Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“All I can say is…the creator refines me!” Bringer says as he glows in a golden light and self-destructs in an attempt to kill the Phatheon siblings. “I have completed my mission” Bringer says as his vision becomes impaired due to the dust.

As the dust and rubble settled the silhouettes of two individuals were slowly revealed. A glowing blue pair of eyes illuminates the shadows as Belle emerges unscathed. Behind her a taller figure slowly emerges with glowing green eyes revealing a slightly battered wise.

The weakened Bringer widened his eyes as he locked onto the green glow “you are…the refined one.” With the last of his strength Bringer fades away in a golden light.

Belle quickly tries to reach out and capture Bringer, but is a step too late. “Darn! We had him, we could have gotten more answers!” Belle stomps the ground and almost immediately realises what just transpired a moment ago. “Wise! Are you ok? You just took the blow for me!” Belle says worriedly.

With a head hung low Wise shook his head and the glow faded from his eyes. Taking a deep breath he reassures Belle “Yeah, I'm fine. Well as fine as I can be at least. I took that blow rather well. More importantly, we should quickly regroup with the others and head home to collect our thoughts.”

Belle nods in agreement. “Do you need me to carry you Wise?” Her answer was responded to by a light shake of the head.

Shortly after the events on the bridge. Wise and Belle make their way home and collapse on the staff room couche.

“Ah i'm so tired bro, I can not do all of that again” Belle whines as she throws her head back.

“I hear yah, it's definitely not preferable being in constant danger, but i’d gladly do it all again.” Wise says through an exhausted smile. “After all, we've made far more progress in the last few months than we’ve had in years as Phaethon. Not only do we have a whole bunch of powerful agents at our call, but vital information as well.”

Belle sighs, “yeah you have a point there, but there’s also a lot more questions to answer as well. First of all, now that we know what a sacrifice is we need to figure out how they can transform.”

Wise chimes in. “When me and Section 6 were hunting down Bringer, we witnessed him injecting himself with some kind of golden serum. Within moments he transformed instantly unlike any other individual suffering from ether corruption.”

Bell sits up straight on the couch and places a hand on her chin. “Secondly, Bringer wasn’t working alone, he was with that secretary chick from the Vision Corp case. Meaning there are many others like him out there. So what’s their objective?”

“As I recall, Bringer was shouting a bunch of nonsense about a creator and refinement. Like he believes in a greater power that can change the world.” Wise says.

“Like a cult?” Belle says with furrowed brows.

“Like a cult.” Wise says. “What we should focus on though is where the secretary went. Considering that she and Bringer were accomplices, it's likely that she has access to more of that serum and probably has more intimate dealings with this cult.” Wise gets up and heads to the H.D.D when a voice suddenly rings out.

“Master, if I may. I would like to apologize once more for being out of commission through the entirety of the mission.” Says the A.I. assistant fairy. “I will do my best to take countermeasures to ensure that I can be of more use in the future. And I would like to start by advising that you must take a rest master. Considering your physical state and the amount of planning you had to do in the last few days, I believe adequate rest is required.”

Wise stops to think for a moment, wanting to protest, he was thinking of ignoring fairy's suggestion, but decides to look at Belle for no particular reason.

Belle quickly chimes in with a worried face “fairy’s right Wise, we just went through a life or death battle. We need to rest before we burn ourselves out.”

Wise pauses then nods his head in understanding. “You’re right, we’ve done all we could for now, let's 55 go to bed and get back to the grind tomorrow.” Wise says as he makes his way towards the door to the main shop.

“I think I'm gonna sit back and watch a movie before bed, want to watch with me bro?” Belle says as she lays back down.

Wise turns his head and gives Belle a tired smile. “No, I think I'm going to get out of these ragged clothes and turn in early for the night.” Wise says as he turns his head to leave. Leaving behind Belle to look at her retreating brother with a worried face.

Wise makes his way towards his room, his footsteps heavy. With a deep breath he crashes onto his bed face first. The day was an exhausting one, but that doesn’t mean habits are gonna stop just like that. With that thought Wise tilted his head to the side and pulled out his phone; browsing the internet-knot to see what’s going on. Of course the disappearance of Commander Bringer was trending on the top page. Other than that not much caught his attention, that is until he saw that he had many unread messages. All from various friends.

“Trust me more next time and I’ll have your back!” Says Zhu Yuan. With that, Wise smiled. He really didn’t want to become enemies With Zhu Yuan. `

“So, you turned out to be the infamous proxy Phaethon huh? I had a feeling you weren’t normal…” from Jane. Wise was likewise surprised Jane was an undercover cop.

From Caesar on behalf of the Sons of Calydon messaged “don’t be a stranger yah hear? Next time, I want to fight an even bigger opponent.” Wise chuckled.

Wise froze at the next message, “that was bootylicious proxy! Did I say that right? Anton has been teaching me some phrases lately!” Wise had to do a double take from Big Ben’s message.

“Pleasure being of service to you master proxy, do not hesitate to call upon Victoria Housekeeping in the future .” From lycaon. Wise could always count on Victoria housekeeping, he thought.

This time it was a message from Ellen "Hey proxy, let's get some teamilk or whatever sometime. Hang out and forget about all this business." Wise thought about it for a second, he could use a break. But there was still to much work to be done.

Wise widened his eyes at the next message. “Proxy. fight me” Says Miyabi. Wise’s mind started to go a mile a minute as he tried to think about what she meant.
“FIGHT. Me. Fight. Me. Fight with me…” yeah that’s probably what she meant, there’s no way miss hoshimi would actually want to hurt me right?

With that, Wise decided to call it a night as he put his phone down and flipped onto his back, pulling his covers up. As he slowly closed his eyelids his eyes began to grow a faint green glow. Little did he know the tips of his fingers began to turn black, small ether crystals formed and vanished just as quickly.

At the same time elsewhere, Hollow Zero pulsed from a distance. Most didn’t notice, while those who happened to have equipment capable of measuring ether intensity got a ping outside the hollows.
“What in the world?” Says Ray the head researcher at Scott Outpost. She looked at various graphs and monitors displaying the spike in ether activity the other researchers who happened to witness the pulse ran around in frenzy.
Roland walked up besides Ray "Is there a problem Ray?"

Ray gave a hard stare at the various monitors before replying "To soon to say, but I've got a feeling we'll be doing some serious overtime."

Chapter Text

Flames and ruins are the only words that can be used to describe the now destroyed Lumina Square. The bodies of various agents littered the floor. Through the streets footsteps could be heard followed by heavy breathing.

“I need to find Belle!” Wise gasps. He runs down the road towards the parking garage in an attempt to escape the battleground. Behind him thunderous footprints followed. Each step shook the ground, each second another memory of the beast flashed before his eyes. Wise had to survive, to find Belle and figure out how to defeat the monster that escaped the hollow.

That was until a car was sent hurtling towards him “ah, so this is how Belle felt that one time” Wise thought as he accepted his fate. In a split second he felt himself get pulled to the side as a streak of crimson filled his vision.

“Wha-Billy!?” Wise exclaimed. Before him was a tattered Billy, his left arm and torso torn open, sparks flying off the damaged parts. “Billy! We need to get out of here and regroup with Section 6, they’ll know what to do!”

“Not this time manager.” Billy said in a low, cold voice. Turning his head slightly he looked towards Wise with what looked like a glare. “I’m broken and without the boss to keep me in check, if the city and its people are to survive…then I need to get you out of here.”

“Billy! Hold on, we can get out of here together! Just come with me, I'm sure we can patch you up as well. We need as many fighters as we can to take down that thing!” Wise desperately tried to convince Billy

“You don’t understand manager.” Billy says as he turns his head back towards the intersection. “It’s already here.” A large clawed hand stretches out from around the corner of the building, crushing it with its grip. “Now go! I’ll buy you some time!” With a roar Billy charged towards the gargantuan hand and aimed his revolver even higher, unloading an incredible amount of bullets within seconds causing the beast to roar in pain. He didn’t last long however as he was soon vaporized by a scorching beam of energy.

Seeing no other choice wise turns around and runs towards his car. With a single step inside the parking lot Wise felt weightless as a dark void appeared beneath him, swallowing him whole. Wise screamed as he fell into the darkness and suddenly stopped falling. He had no idea why, but he had the urge to look directly beneath him as if the answer to all this madness lay there. The answer came almost as immediately as all of these events with a large ether core appearing in the darkness. A second one appeared and both cores danced until they were parallel to each other. They began to grow in size and luminosity. With the glow of the cores, a hulking figure can be made out that shook wise to the core. It was the monster that killed his friends, that destroyed Lumina Square. A giant that reminded him of a few very old monster movies. It was a titanic lizard like ethereal with spikes adorning the limbs of his body, two cores making up the shoulder joints of a regular ethereal and a large tail.
Wise floated in the abyss silently, looking at the creature, hoping not to get its attention. His luck ran out however as the beast shifted his eyes onto wise and with lunge it swallowed wise whole.

With a jolt and sweat covered body, wide sat up gasping for air. He looked around frantically absorbing his surroundings, quickly patting himself down to make sure he still had all of his parts; he finally let out a breath of relief. “Note to self don’t drink with Burnice before bed.” Wise says as a reminder.

Noticing the time on his phone, he quickly got up, got dressed and got ready to open the store. As he headed downstairs he noticed an individual waiting outside the front door, peering into the store from the door window. As the stranger’s eyes locked on to Wise’s eyes, he acknowledged their presence with a nod.
Wise decided the first thing he'd do is to play it safe. “Fairy, confirm identity of individual outside of Random Play.” Wise says as he slowly makes his way to the door.

“Individual recognized to be assistant of Dr.Ray, she appeared before when Dr.Ray went missing in Hollow Zero.” Fairy summarized.

“If she’s here, then something big must’ve happened again.” Wise thought. As wise opened the door. The researcher barges in with a little too much excitement. The urgency however is not lost on you.

“Hello again, Mr. Private Investigator. Sorry for barging in so suddenly, but we have an urgent problem that requires all hands on deck and of course Ray says she needs you!” The young assistant says all in one breath.
A slight drop of sweat rolls down Wise’s face “uhh sure I’ll be at the outpost as soon as I can.” Wise says as he nods and turns around. He was stopped however as a hand grabbed his shoulder and he was spun around.
The assistant said with more urgency. “A vehicle is already ready to escort you to Scott Outpost. Time is of the essence.” She turns around to make sure the coast is clear before turning back “we have reason to believe Nineva will breach the hollow.” She says with a firm voice that hides a mix of dread.

Upon hearing those words, Wise gets a piercing headache as he recalls the image of the titan in his nightmare. He gasps and falters backwards. Only to be caught by the assistant researcher. “Hey! What's wrong, are you ok!?” She says with worry.

“A headache that’s all. But that’s not worth mentioning. I get the urgency of the situation, let’s go” Wise said with a serious face. On the way he texts Belle the situation.
Upon arriving at Scott Outpost, Wise quickly made his way to the interior tent, noting that soldier eleven was here as well, as well as all of Section Six and Zhu Yuan’s team. As Wise made his way towards the meeting table he got a nod of Ray whose face shifted from serious, slightly relieved and back to serious. This reaction prompted all the other members to look up as well and greet the newcomer. “Manager! What are you doing here?” Says Seth who is happy to see another familiar face.

“I was requested to be here by Ray.” Wise said calmly.

“You mean by Dr.Ray? Well knowing you, it’s not too surprising that you’d have some important connections. I guess this is one of your other secrets that you haven’t told me about?” Zhu Yuan says with a smile.
Wise slightly looks away as he responds “Of course this isn’t a secret or anything, it’s just that Scott Outpost was hiring private investigators and money was tight so it seemed like a good opportunity at the time. Of course since I am working with the defense corps, everything is above board and I’ve managed to help Ray with a lot of her research along the way.” Wise says as if he’s trying to convince Zhu.

“Seconded, he has proven to be an invaluable ally during his brief time at the outpost.”

“Indeed, without the private investigator I’m afraid we wouldn’t have made as much progress in all the research Ray has been hacking away at.” Says Roland and Ophelia in acknowledgement.

“To be praised by many important individuals, that’s the manager for you” says Yanagi. “But let’s not stray too far from the main issue at hand. Officer Zhu Yuan, why don’t you help catch wise up to speed.” She says as she adjusts her glasses.

With a nod Zhu looked directly at wise “at 23:00 hours a pair of pub sec officers on patrol at Port Ermos chanced upon a small swarm of wasp ethereals heading towards the docks. In response they opened fire, protecting the civilians and quarantining the zone.” Zhu yuan says as she relays the reports.“Furthermore at 21:00 hours a high fluctuation of ether activity was reported by all individuals with a measuring device, the only problem was this took place here outside the hollow. Some even reported that they witnessed Hollow Zero pulsing if only for a moment.” Ray says as she looks over different documents.

Wise places a hand on his chin as he mumbles just loud enough for people to hear his thoughts “fluctuations outside the hollow shouldn’t be that big of a deal considering New Eridu is powered by ether, but ethereals appearing outside the hollows is impossible, there’s not enough ether in the atmosphere to sustain them. Could this mean hollow zero is on the verge of expanding? If that happens then New Eridu is at risk of being swallowed whole.” He then looks up and at Ray.
“Wait, your messenger told me that you suspect that Nineva will breach containment, but wouldn’t it make more sense for the hollow to expand?” Wise says as he ponders all of the variables.

Ray responded with certainty “I may not have the evidence to back it up as of this moment, but I believe that Nineveh will absolutely leave the hollow rather than the hollow growing. The wasps were just the scout, she commands them to find her target. Not to mention the stronger Ethereals tend to hunt down weaker ones to maintain their territories. I believe that Nineva is responding to something outside the hollow, something that can threaten her reign. When we obtained the readings for the spike in ether activity, they weren’t coming from the direction of the hollow. They came from the city. “ Ray concluded. Everyone was silent, processing the information and Ray’s hypothesis.

Miyabi steps forward, a hand on her hilt “so what you’re saying is, there’s an ethereal on the loose. If so then the mission remains clear. We at section 6 will slay all evil.” Miyabi says with resolute certainty. Her team nodded in agreement.

“Don’t count out Pub sec either. We will increase patrols within the city for any suspicious activity.” Zhu Yuan says. Qingyi who was quietly analyzing all of the information given steps up.

“I’ve just reviewed all security cameras in the densely populated sectors of New Eridu, none gave any answer to the spike in ether activity. Meaning the signal most likely originated from a companion hollow around the less densely populated sectors.” Upon finishing her statement Qingyi took a step back and analyzed everyone’s faces. Many shared a thought, if hollow exploration is necessary then those from H.A.N.D will have the manpower to explore many of the companion hollows in New Eridu. But, there was also someone here who could speed up the process. Many turned their heads to wise. To which he responds.

“Looks like we’ve got a solid plan. So, shall we get started?”

|

Hollow exploration is always dangerous no matter how powerful an individual or team is. There are always multiple threats that threaten an agent’s life from ether corruption, ethereals, raiders and special fluctuations. Walking around a hollow without a carrot is plane suicide for most. But not for Phaethon. The plan was clear, contact as many agents as possible and investigate for signs of large ether activity. Section 6 and many from hand took the initiative of taking on the larger hollows, pub sec were only allowed access to smaller hollows despite the urgency of the situation. The Defense Force were delegated to increase efforts in the three great hollows in order to make up for the absence of hand operatives.
As for the few remaining hollows, Belebog Industries were taking care of the ones under their jurisdiction under the guise of construction. The last small hollow in new eridu fell under Wise and Belle’s watch. Sitting at the H.D.D wise syncs up with Eos and with the help from the cunning hairs who were promised a generous reward in return for their services they embarked on their expedition.

Three hours go by and no luck yet, no abnormalities, no change in the ethereals. After another hour of investigating Nicole promptly sits on her suitcase and says “Proxy, it’d be easier to look for something if we knew what it was!” She huffs, but continues to survey her surroundings.

“I understand, but again we don’t really know what we’re looking for. Chances are that this hollow won’t have anything we need, but at least we can cross it off the list of hollows that we need to check. So I appreciate your cooperation.” Wise says calmly. It’s true that things have been going smoothly and that if there were something going on in this hollow then Nicole and her group would be in danger.
An alarm cuts through the conversation with a beep. Billy takes out the alarm and looks at it “hey boss, the alarm went off seven times already. We can’t stay in the hollow for much longer.” Nekomata follows up from behind Billy.

“Nothing of note up ahead.” Looking up anby notice the clouds getting darker “Rain. Looks like we’ll have to continue our investigation tomorrow.” She says with a stretch. Anby returns from scouting and walks towards her team.

“No abnormalities here. The chances of us finding our goal on the first day. Unlikely. Request to continue investigating after rest.” Anby says mechanically. Thinking for a moment, Wise had no choice, but to accept the day's results.

“Agreed, guiding you to the hollow’s exit now.” Wise says as he makes his way towards the exit when suddenly a gunshot was fired and a body hit the floor. Turning around, Wise through Eos’s eyes saw Billy aiming directly at him through a hole in the head of a specter etheral. His cold gaze slowly looked around.
Anby quickly dashed towards the proxy and went for an overhand slash and jumped directly over Him, another specter falling to the ground before disappearing. He turns around and sees a large amount of ethereals beginning to swarm their location from the front. Hearing a roar from the back the wise quickly turns his head. “Nya! They’re coming from behind too!” Nekomata says with urgency.

“Nicole orders!” Anby exclaims.
Looking around Nicole spots a large sewer pipe, with disgust in her face and reluctance she thought of a battle plan. She could have the cunning hares fight in the open, but risk getting overwhelmed. The tunnel is more ideal , but makes our close quarters combatants useless. Quickly glancing at the impending swarm she makes up her mind. “Everyone into the sewer pipe, Billy cover us! Anby, Nekomata see how far the pipes go and find an exit!” Nicole barks her order and runs to pick up Eos, shifting her heels upon grabbing Eos she lunges towards the sewer pipe. Billy covers everyone’s escape with his deadly accuracy. “Billy now! Get in here!” Nicole says as she runs deeper into the sewers.

Billy quickly turns and runs into the pipe as well, hundreds of ethereal funnels in and topples on top of each other in order to get as close as possible. As Billy dashes into the darkness he sees a purple glimmer. With what some would describe as a smile on his face he speeds up and dashes past the light. Nicole, who was charging her gravity rounds, smirked “Bye, bye losers!” She says with a kiss. The ether energy roars from her briefcase and charges toward the ethereals, completely stopping their advance. Not only did more and more funnel into one spot, slowing down the wave, but Billy took this opportunity to mow down the crowd.

Wise returns shortly after with Nekomata and Anby, fear adorning their faces. Nicole turns and sees their expression, “what’s wrong guys? We need to get out of here quick, did you find an exit?” She says, her sentence speeding up with anticipation.

Anby looks down. Seeing this Nekomata steps up, “Nicole…the tunnel has collapsed up ahead, there’s no escaping from this way.” Nekomata says with defeat.
Nicole stutters, her blood runs cold. She realizes that their chances of surviving are non-existent. That is until wise speaks up.

“Look Nicole, I know it’s difficult but if you can survive for a bit longer then help will arrive. I’ve already informed any available hands on deck to come rescue us.” Wise says with a hand on his chest. With that Nicole’s fire returns. Turning around she shoots out another gravity field into the swarm as her first disappears. Billy taking this chance reloads his mags.

“Proxy how much time do we need to last?” Nicole says with a focused face.

“It’s hard to say, approximately 10 minutes at the earliest.” Wise says with a calculating gaze.

“Alright.” Nicole says with resolution. She aims her cannon towards the ceiling slightly above the area her last shot landed and charges up an even bigger attack.

“What are you?” Anby quickly says as she quickly realizes Nicole’s plan. “Nicole, wait!” She says with an outstretched hand. Anby was too late however as the blast already left the barrel and consumed the ceiling, debris and dirt clogging up the entrance.

Nicole smiles slightly as she explains her intent. “Don’t worry! We should have enough air in here between the three of us to last long enough for reinforcements.”

“The three of us? Boss, there's five of us here.” Billy says, questioning the count.
Nicole responds with a smirk “Billy turn off your air filter module, be like the proxy and stop breathing.” Everyone looked at Nicole with widened eyes. Sure it wasn’t necessary for Eos and Billy, but it was still a cold thing to say.

Wise speaks up again “I’m sending a distress signal now, help should arrive short-“. Before Wise could finish his sentence, a sickening wave of discomfort crashed into him before returning to normal. He knows this feeling, that’s the feeling of entering a hollow.

Fairy who was mostly silent speaks up “Master, ether activity increasing at an alarming rate. It appears 6th street was swallowed by a newly formed companion hollow.” Wise looks up with shock. Looking back down and around his surroundings he quickly devised a plan.

“Fairy take over for me and have Eos continuously emit an SOS beacon! I’ll take Belle and evacuate to a safe area!” Wise says as he gets up and makes his way towards the door.

“Understood master.” Fairy responded and with a light glow began to take over Eos. Wise makes his way into the main store to find his sister helping a bunch of customers who appeared to be in a panic. Noticing her brother she quickly ran up to him.

“Wise! All of 6th street and the surrounding sectors were swallowed up by the hollow! We need to get out of here!” Belle says frantically while dragging wise towards the door.

“Agreed, everyone!” Wise shouts, those in the store turned towards him. “ I know the situation is crazy, but we’re planning on leaving the hollow. For those of you who have high ether aptitude and stay here for help to arrive, those who have low aptitude like us, follow along. I am a private investigator for Scott outpost who primarily explores hollow zero. I can help all of you, but I can’t promise that I can protect all of you.” A few looked at each other for some kind of push, what wise was saying makes sense, but the risk was also great as ethereals would maw them if any appeared. For most they seemed reluctant, but for those who have low aptitude they didn’t have a choice. Belle opened the door wide for everyone to evacuate and led the charge. Taking out his phone, he called for fairy’s assistance.

“Fairy, I need the quickest route to leave the hollow.” His phone immediately came alive and responded to his demands.

“Already finished master, quick route out of the hollow would be to take the metro out of the hollow.” Fairy says as she goes back to her previous task.
Hearing this Belle steps up next to wise “alright everybody, we need to head to the metro to leave this hollow! Watch out for danger and pick each other up if anyone falls. We’ll all get out of this together!” She commanded. She looked through each and every person there, some nodded, others looked frightened. But all obeyed.
Running down sixth street their group grew bigger with residences from sixth street such as Ahsha front the arcade, General Chop, Elfy and many more. As they make their way towards the metro wise and belle ushered people underground. “Belle! Go tell the staff that the north training heading to Lumina Square is the exit for the hollow. Have them evacuate the passengers quickly! I’ll keep evacuating people.” With a nod Belle quickly heads down the steps.

“Stay safe and get down here quickly bro!” Belle yells as she hops down a flight of steps. Refocusing on the evacuees wise noticed an elderly woman knocked down by the evacuees. Wise quickly fights through the crowd and to help the woman back into her feet when all of a sudden he receives a notification from Fairy.

“Master, hostile enemies detected. Many ethereals are converging on your location.” Fairy says. Looking back towards Sixth Street, Wise confirms a swarm of blastcrawlers are heading directly to the metro, many are climbing over buildings and shops.

“Ma’am you need to run as hard as you can, we don’t have much time!” wise said urgently. Turning around he begins to pull along the old woman, but as he takes his first step; A wave of nausea hits him and he falls to his knees. With both hands planted on the ground he can feel a burning sensation on his forearms. Pulling up his sleeves his eyes widened. Ether crystals are beginning to form and quite rapidly at that. “Not good, my ether resistance was always low, but the corruption is happening far too quickly! What’s happening!?” Wise thought urgently.
He was brought back to reality when the granny pulled him to his feet and quickly yelled “Come on! You need to get to the metro quickly! This old bag of bones may not have what it takes, but at least a kiddie like you can make it!” Through Wise’s eyes he can see the concern and determination on the granny’s face. He realized that the granny was really willing to give up her life to save him. Feeling touched, the fire in Wise was reignited.

“Don’t count yourself out just yet granny. Us folks on Sixth Street stick together and look after each other, always.” Wise says with a smile. With a gentle pull he picks up the old woman and carries her on his back, quickly running with all his might towards the metro. Despite physically being a twig, Wise was surprised he was able to keep up with someone on his back. The station grew closer and closer. The sound of the ethereals a distance away, he picks up the pace.

“We’re gonna make it!” Wise says. As the words left his mouth he turns his head slightly to look behind him and sees a blastcrawler lunging directly for them. Realizing that if the ethereal crashes into them, it would surely detonate. An explosion would completely incapacitate them, making them easy prey for the hoard of ethereals. With no time to think Wise tried to swat the ethereal away with all his might, knowing it was a futile act considering his poor physique. Yet despite the pointless struggle, he wanted to at least give everything he had in order to attempt at resisting.

“Please! Please! Let this work!” Wise thinks over and over. As if responding to the imminent danger, Wise's eyes began to glow and the crystals on his arm grew to form a gauntlet; more crystals also formed on his face, showing the acceleration of his corruption. Time seemed to slow down, Wise not catching onto the extent of his transformation only focused on the back of his hand as it inched closer to the blast crawler. The moment they connected however, Wise never would have imagined that the blastcrawler would be sent flying back towards a wall, exploding on impact. Shocked and confused he didn’t question the miracle he was given. “Hold on granny! We’re almost there!” Wise roared as he sprinted even harder towards the metro. Upon reaching the steps he jumps down the flight of stairs. What he would normally consider to be a foolish move considered the person on his back, he didn't think so now. Running on adrenaline he felt like he could take more risks. Landing on his feet albeit hard, he quickly lets the granny down. “Go! Follow the evacuees onto the metro, I’ll join you shortly!” Wise barks as he turns back around. The old woman nods and rushes towards the metro’s depths.

Running towards the base of the stairs wise jumps and grabs the shutters, trying to pull them down. Grabbing hold of the shutters he successfully manages to pull them down in time as a wave of blastcrawlers crashed into them. Lucky for him, this type of ethereal would only detonate in the presence of a person. So as long as he kept his distance. Making his way toward the depths himself wise quickly reunites with the evacuees, their voices reaching him before he could see them. Many are funneling into the already packed cards. There were always those who refused to make to make space or allow anyone to get close to them, causing the lines to back up. Many voices can be heard amongst the crowd.

“Please let me in! I don’t have a high ether aptitude!” One man said.
A woman holding her son close yells out “take my son! Please let my son on the train!” She says in tears.

“Don’t get so close! Wait for the next train! Hey personal space!” One entitled looking individual says.
Among the front of the crowd is Belle, doing her best to calm the crowd and get as many people to safety as she can. “Hey!” She says. “Don’t push! We can get all of you to safety, we just need to stay calm and make room. The ethereals shouldn’t be able to get us down here just yet. Those with lower ether resistance should board first. Everyone else can go after!” She says as she tries to reason with the crowd.

In response the crowd roared in disagreement. Many opposed the idea of giving up their opportunity to escape even if it meant the death of others. That was when a booming voice cut through the crowd. “Quiet! Listen to yourself, people!” Many turned towards the voice, those in the back unable to locate its source. Those closer to the indictable and more familiar with the individual parted ways so that more people could see him. Seeing that the man could not be seen by all, the TinMaster decided to give the short king a boost, much to the man’s embarrassment. The source of the voice was revealed to be General Chop, a familiar red chef that operated on sixth st. “People, people! We are neighbors. We’ve always looked after one another. Just because we’ve never expected sixth street to be swallowed by a hollow doesn’t mean we can let it beat us!” He says with conviction. With the voice of a respected figure and neighbor, many of the residents quieted down and nodded their heads in agreement.

They were better than that, better than animals no offense to the Thirens. With a smile Belle quickly takes charge once again “Ok those with low aptitude step forward and boar-“ a tremor interrupts her. A moment of silence and a few seconds later the tunnel begins to tremor again and again. A rhythm can be made out from the tremors and they grew stronger and louder. In moments an explosion like bang destroys a wall behind them. Green light illuminating the dust and with a roar the dust dissipates revealing an armored canine ethereal, an Hati.

Once again the crowd panics and with even more ferocity, they funnel into the metro. Some urged the conductor to go. Among the chaos Belle gets swept inside, climbing over people in order to avoid being trampled “Hey stop! Stop! Wise!” She screamed. Those were the last words that wise would hear from her as the train began to take off, leaving the unfortunate behind. Many screamed and panicked, some cried in despair. The Hati began to charge, crashing into people and flinging them into the air. As the people scattered and knocked over each other, an unfortunate child was trampled by the people and the Hati had turned its sights on the child. Crawling backwards with his newly bruised body the child begged quietly. “Help” the boy whimpered. “Please someone, anyone help me!” He cried out in vain. The Hati knows no mercy as it jumps into the air and descends upon the child, the impact alone capable of reducing the child to a puddle. And with a thundering boom it was all over. Standing in place of the impact zone was not a tragic fate, but a tall armored individual with the boy safely in his arms. The armored hati blown back into a nearby pillar fading from existence.

Chapter Text

Seeing the boy about to lose his life caused something in Wise to stir; his face grew hot, his blood began to boil and his body began to move on its own. A futile effort he realized as he knew his body’s limits. There was no way he could save the boy in time as the ethereal was mid lunge. And why should he anyways? Those who can’t help should stay out of the way and do what they can in the moment; and in this moment, Wise should prioritize his own safety so he can get back to Belle, get back to finding his missing teacher. Yet his body moved on its own, as if compelled to save the boy.

In an attempt to reach the boy, Wise shot out his hand trying to get even an inch closer, time seemed to slow down; he scrunched his face in anger and his eyes glowed an ominous green. In the corner of his eyes he managed to catch the change in his arm. The ether crystals that formed earlier completely encased his arm. It glowed, formed a large chunk and exploded all within moments. In its place was a white bone-like vambrace with a metallic sheen. The same phenomena occurred in his legs, they exploded and the same type of transformation. Then his body, his vision went blank for a moment and returned shortly after. His mind immediately rested on two thoughts.
First, he is starting to get too far along in the corruption. Meaning he needed to leave very soon. Second, those who experienced ether corruption are said to gain a momentary boost in physical strength thanks to the adrenaline and reinforced ethereal matter transforming their body. If the rumors are true, then there is a chance he could save the boy. With one last spurt he lunged towards the boy almost disappearing and instantly appearing right behind him. and with a sloppy punch Wise knocked away the ethereal with ease, quickly bending down and hold the boy in the process to get ready to run as Wise believed he only stunned the Hati.

To all the panicked civilians, they froze and turned their heads in the direction of the explosion, the pillar layed in ruins and the Hati began to fade into the air. With disbelief they looked around to see who or what could have caused such a feat when all of the sudden they spotted the odd one out in the crowd. A tall white armored ethereal reminiscent of a knight crouched down, its right arm stretched into a fist and a human child in its arms. Immediately they would have panicked had not the etherealized Wise gently brought the child to his feet. Many were shocked at the sight, never have they heard of an ethereal that wasn’t immediately hostile.

After a moment wise got up, looking around he sees the Hati fading away. With a sigh of relief he gently takes the child and places him on his feet. When the child looks up he freezes and stares at Wise with fear, the tears in his eyes continue to pour yet the boy couldn’t make a sound. Seeing the child’s reaction, he could only try to reassure the child “Aghh-ah, ahghh!!! (hey it’s ok)” Quickly Wise brought his hand up to where his mouth should be, a metallic clink can be heard upon contact. “What the heck, what was that!?” he thought. Quickly taking a look at his condition Wise realizes that it wasn’t just his arms and legs that were corrupted, it was his entire body. But such a thing was impossible, anyone who fully transforms into an ethereal loses their reasoning, their sanity; effectively they can no longer be human. Snapping back into reality, Wise realizes that he was the source of the boy’s fear and backs up quickly, startling the surrounding people at the same time. Looking around he sees that all eyes were on him, no one was moving. They were waiting to see whether he was friend or foe.

In an effort to calm everyone down Wise puts his hands up in surrender. Many were wary still but once they realized that this ethereal didn’t mean harm just yet, they momentarily relaxed. The boy ran towards the nearest adult and crashed into their arms. Wise was relieved but had a different worry now. First there was no train. Second, he was an ethereal, meaning he was an enemy of humanity. And lastly, Hati rarely hunted alone: A distant roar and the sounds of multiple footsteps all but confirmed his thoughts. Thinking quickly he jumped over the crowd and landed near the hole in the wall the first Hati created. With a growl and hand gestures Wise tried to communicate the dangers to the people. It was all in vain as the sudden roar followed by the appearance of three more ethereals bursting out of the hole panicked the crowd. “It led more ethereals to us!” A thiren man said.

“Run into the tunnels!” Another person said.

“Wait no! If the train comes back you’re as good as dead!” Another says. The crowd, although panicked, realized that they were trapped and did the only thing they could. They gathered into a corner, the most physically fit in front. There were some wounded pub sec officers present, but they could at best fire a few shots assuming they had the opportunity.

Looking down at his clenched fist Wise thought about his transformation. “It wasn’t a coincidence” he thought. When I carried the granny outside, when I swatted away the blastcrawler and when I punched the armored Hati. “They weren’t just a lucky break, my body is stronger now.”

With newfound determination Wise ran towards the first Hati and kicked its underbelly resulting in it being imprinted in the ceiling. The second Hati, recognizing Wise as a threat, lunged at him. Noticing that the Hati jumped pretty high, Wise believed he could duck underneath it. In response Wise dashed forward and slid along the ground, sparks flying off of his body as it scraped against the concrete. Using his low ground advantage, Wise grabbed the armored Hati’s hind leg as he slid under it and by shifting his posture, he began to spin the ethereal around before smashing it into the ground, shattering its armor.

“I’m stronger and more agile,” he thought. Noticing a glow on the wall in front of him, Wise turns around and catches the sight of a ball of ether energy hurdling towards him. The third Hati having just fired the attack recoils into the air. Realizing that he didn’t have enough time to dodge, Wise tightens his grip on the ethereal still in his hand and in one swift motion he swung the Hati into the energy ball causing a small shockwave from the collision. Smoke emanated from the charred corpse as the second Hati began to dissipate. Taking a moment to admire his work, Wise failed to block the charge from the last ethereal and was promptly pinned to the ground by it stepping on his arms in the right areas.
Wise struggled to grab the Hati, but was unable to move his arms due to the ethereal stomping them back into the ground whenever he tried to resist. The Hati goes in for a bite. Wise shifts his head. The ethereal goes in for another, again it misses as Wise shifts his head to the side. “Not good, I’m eventually gonna mess up and I don’t want to find out what would happen if I do.” Wise thought.

Fortunately, Wise wouldn’t find out anytime soon as an individual jumped into the Hati’s back, their metalic arms bashing away at the Hati. With the ethereal distracted Wise manages to break free and winds up a punch that manages to stun his opponent. From on top the ethereal a small figure hops off and with a serious face says “listen you, I don’t know if you’re any different than the other ethereals, but I saw how you tried to save the boy. Consider us even.”
“That’s general chop!” Wise thought. A would be smile dawns his ethereal face. “I can’t waste this chance.” Wise thought as he scrambles to his feet and makes a sprint towards the last ethereal. Dashing up to the Hati, Wise grabs its maw and digs his fingers into its hind legbefore jumping into the air and smashing it into the ground. In one rapid motion he picks up the defeated Hati and tears its body in two, announcing his victory. “Whoa! What was that!?” He thought to himself. The finisher was more brutal than he was going for and was completely involuntary. Nonetheless the battle was over. Falling to his knees, Wise took the chance to look around.

Many of the civilians were still wary of him, most were scared of course. Some thought this was one of those cases where stronger ethereals fight one another to claim territory and with no more ethereals, the only ones left are them. Some took up a fighting stance, the pub sec officers ordered civilians to get behind them. Tension was high, another fight was bound to break out. That was until the sound of the metro making its way towards them broke through the tension.
“We made it” Wise thought. A thought struck him though, he was now an ethereal, for whatever reason, he can still think. But he can’t talk to anyone and he would surely be killed on sight if H.A.N.D or any strong individuals were to appear. His thoughts were interrupted however when the metro stops at the station and a voice cuts out from the open doors

“Wise! Everyone! Get on quick!” The voice was none other than Belle who risked corruption in order to come back and evacuate everyone left behind.
Wise sat there, waiting. If he moved now, the evacuees would be in a panic again. So all he has to do is let them all board before he makes his next move. But what was his next move? As an ethereal, if he leaves the hollow then he’ll cease to exist and if he stays then he’ll eventually get killed. “Wait. What did Ray say? Ethereals capable of leaving the hollow?” Wise thought. It’s crazy to risk it, but it might just work.

On the train the rest of the evacuees piled into the carts, each sharing their experience. “Oh my god, I almost didn’t make it out alive.” A Sixth Street resident said.

“My child! Has anyone seen my child!?” A distraught mother cries.

“Mom! I’m here!” A little boy says as he fights through the crowd and embraces his mother.

“I saw it, the kid wouldn’t be standing there if it wasn’t for that armored ethereal” a cat thiren woman said.

“You’re crazy, there’s no way an Ethereal is capable of saving anyone! It was probably saving the boy for later!” A construction worker exclaimed.

“How do we even know if it’s even an ethereal? It could be a H.A.N.D operative in special armor. That would explain why it saved the boy and handled him carefully! He’s human underneath!” An elderly man reasoned. Many thought about the old man’s words and some nodded their heads in agreement. Logically this was the most reasonable solution, but if this was the case then why would this defender look so much like an ethereal?
From the open doors, General Chop made his way into the cart before he was stopped by Belle. “General Chop! I’m glad you’re ok, have you seen Wise?” Belle says as she looks around in worry. General Chop’s eyes widened in realization.

“You mean he wasn’t on the first train out of here?” He says in urgency. Quickly looking around General chop can only reassure Belle “I’m sorry Belle, but I haven’t seen him. So much has happened that I’m afraid he may have gotten lost in the commotion. Hey, maybe he actually made it out already!” General Chop said as he tried to calm Belle down.

“Oh no! Did the ethereals make it through?” Belle says in fear. Did Wise get caught up in it? Is he ok? She thought.

General Chop looked in a certain direction “we did run into a little issue where some ethereals broke into the tunnels, but the strangest thing happened. That guy that looks like an ethereal fought them off” he says as he points to Wise. Before Belle could get a good look in Wise’s direction another crash could be heard up the stairs and the people in line began to panic once more.

“Move it! If you don’t want to get in then get out of my way!” A scared man said as he clawed towards the front. Once again the evacuees began to dangerously funnel into the cart. This time however there was more space, allowing everyone to board. Not a moment later a swarm of blastcrawlers began to enter the metro after breaking down the shudders above. Sensing the danger Wise sprung into action. Grabbing a nearby vending machine he jumped towards the carts, landing just in front of them. Quickly motioning them to leave, he began swatting away any ethereal that got close. Each blastcrawler he sent flying exploded, some causing nearby blastcrawlers to chain detonate as well. However Wise couldn’t handle the swarm by himself, a portion of the swarm started crawling on the ceiling and around the platform.

“Not good! I can’t keep this up forever!” Wise thought as he knocked another ethereal into the stair. The sound of creaking and wheels turning caught his attention, and the train began to move. “Yes! Just a little longer and everyone will get out of here.” With even more fervor Wise continued to swat the blastcrawlers, backing up towards the tracks all the meanwhile.

As the train was swallowed by the darkness of the metro, the blastcrawlers stopped. In unison their focus shifted, all of them began to swarm Wise. Trying his best, Wise continued to keep his distance, however he failed to account for the limited platform, resulting in him falling backwards and towards the tracks. Time felt as if it started to slow down as he fell, the moment being seized by the ethereals as they lunged after him. One by one they piled on top of him. Each making an all too familiar sound. Wise’s vision shifted from being blinded, to seeing red, to seeing his surroundings being illuminated by the blastcrawlers' pulsing bodies. The moment he hit the ground a bright light engulfed him and with an all too familiar sound of an explosion he saw darkness.

The only sound that could be heard in the aftermath of the detonation was the skittering of blastcrawlers as they echoed in the metro.

|

The metro was quiet. The only noise that could be heard was the skittering of a few blastcrawlers that stuck around. Rubble littered the platform from the aftermath of the battle. On the tramlines lies Wise, severely weakened and injured. His right arm was blown off and a gaping hole found its place on his chest. Yet Wise couldn’t feel the pain. Not because he was in shock or was influenced by adrenaline, but because he had a more aching pain demanding his attention. Down below his stomach was rumbling, sending signals to his brain, telling him to feed. With a low groan and great effort, Wise flipped onto his stomach. Taking one arm he placed it in front of him and pulled back. Then he did the same with the opposite arm. Again and again. Slowly he managed to drag his body underneath the platform. Hiding in the trenches designed to help people escape oncoming trains, he rested his body. Struggling, he tried to open his jaws. An impossible feat considering his ethereal form did not possess a mouth, smooth armor plating in its place. Yet, the only way he knew how to eat was with his mouth, so he kept trying to open his nonexistent mouth.

Frankly he couldn’t care less, anything was good enough as long as it satiated his hunger. Again and again he tried, his head shaking from his efforts. He put more strength into his jaw muscles, a small crack forming in the center of his face. The pain of his hunger grew with every passing second, motivating him to continue trying. He didn’t know what it was he was going to feed on. Driven by his instincts, Wise gave the final push and a notable crack can be heard as the crack ripped apart with a crunch and a pop, forming a mouth. The moment he did however he completely froze up. What was next? Does he eat the ethereals or would he have to raid the empty stores up above. Does that mean he has to fight more ethereals? The questions will go unanswered as his eyes rolled up into the back of his head and he began to deeply inhale.

Feeling a fullness in his mouth and a delectable taste of something he cannot describe, he continued to swallow gulps of air. The moment the unknown mass hit his stomach he paused and his hunger grew even more violent; it sought more of whatever this taste was. So Wise continued to inhale, more and more of the unknown mass was sucked down, fueling his appetite. Without even realizing that his wounds were rapidly healing, he continued to eat. The more he ate the better he felt, the stronger he became.

Clenching his fist Wise could feel himself burning up, his body responding to the meal. With a purple glow, his backside began to form spikes along his spine, his head became more defined, his muscle mass increased and noticably he grew a thick reptilian tail. With one final grunt his missing arm grew back, good as new. When his transformation was done, he stopped eating. His senses warned him of nearby danger. Crawling out of the trenches he jumped back onto the metro platform and found the rest of the blastcrawlers returning to the subway. Having believed the threat was eliminated, they dispersed. But with the drop of ether density, they were mistaken. Many of the powerful ethereals in the area sensed the drop in ether and began converging in the metro. Goblins, fauna, rangers and more Hati joined the assembled ethereals as they recognized that Wise was a dangerous threat.

Twitching his head around, Wise observed the amased army, not moving a step. Silence overtook the metro for a moment until a single goblin bravely charged towards him alone, his kin shortly following after. The goblin winded his sign post back and jumped before striking. It didn’t land the attack however as Wise quickly grabbed the goblin by its face and immedietly smashed its head into the ground, the goblin’s kin stopping in their tracks. Slowly picking up the corpse, Wise brought it up to eye level and observed the fading ethereal.
“Agh aghhh ah ah ah ah” the noises resembled that of a laugh and with one deep breath he huffed his chest.

The remaining ethereals as if taunted finally made their move. They all rushed him in an effort to overwhelm him with numbers. Unfortunately for them, this was what Wise wanted from the start. With a powerful ether infused roar, Wise knocked back any nearby ethereal and stunned those who got to close.

Taking this opportunity for a counter attack, Wise ran towards a group of fauna on all fours, almost feral like. With a slash from his now razor-like clawed hands he shreds the first Fauna apart. The second faunad jumped back and opened its flowerlike appendage in order to charge up a projectile attack. Wise didn’t give it a chance however as he anticipated the fauna’s retreat and leaped right after it. Quickly closing the distance, Wise grabbed hold of its appendage and forced the fauna shut. The fauna having built up a charge started to leak ether energy from the tip of its flower. Taking the opportunity to recharge, Wise bit down on the fauna and began absorbing the energy. The fauna wilting as wise sucks it dry. After absorbing all of its ether energy Wise holds the fauna above him and easily ripped it apart. More blastcrawlers scurried towards Wise and leaped, in the distant rangers began charging up an arrow attack. Quickly Wise countered with his newly obtained tail, he swiped them away, knocking the blastcrawlers into the various rangers scattered across the battlefield. Unfortunately his accuracy wasn’t so great as he missed the majority of them. No matter however as he successfully staggered a few of them, stopping their arrow attack momentarily.

The next moment Wise took a blow to his side, knocking him to the ground. Quickly getting up and looking in the direction of the attack, he saw that the rangers he missed were still charging up their arrows. Sensing ether energy coming from his blind spot, Wise quickly shifted his body to the side narrowly avoiding another attack. Again he sensed a mass of ether energy coming his way, this time however he did not dodge. Rather taking his arm and flicking it to his side, Wise caught an ether arrow and looked at the ranger who fired the shot. Bringing up the arrow to his mouth, Wise bit down on the arrow shattering its form as it evaporated. Afterward, Wise dashed towards the ranger, striking it with his palm before clenching his fingers. Digging his finger’s into its chest, Wise used the extra grip to cleanly punch the Ranger’s head off. Quickly turning around, Wise began charging headfirst into various ethereals. Punching, kicking, swiping at them with his tail. Each hit practically landed a one-hit ko. Yet despite his impressive strength, Wise wasn’t making a dent in the swarm of ethereals. Another blastcrawler snuck up and detonated next to him. Reacting quickly, Wise narrowly dodges the explosion. Immedietly afterward, Wise jumped up into the air as a ranger fired an arrow where he just landed. The ethereals weren’t smart, but they had enough firepower to do him harm. Wanting to keep his distance, he waited for the right opportunity to end this with a single blow.

As a distant Hati charged up an ether ball attack, Wise’s eyes gleamed. This was his chance to power up quickly. Moving so fast Wise almost looked like he teleported in front of the Hati and with a swift axe kick, he crushed the Hati, forming a crater underneath. Diving into the ball of ether, Wise absorbed the energy as fast as he could. The ethereals taking their chances rushed him again. Some metro goblins managed to get some good hits in yet Wise didn’t seem bothered by their attacks. The rangers who prepared a dash attack charged towards wise, their blades ready to slice his head off his shoulders. Before the blade could connect however, Wise quickly tilted his head and moved out of the way. Jumping as hard as he could, he crashed into the wall just off the platform and dug his clawed hands into the concrete wall. The ethereals gathered and charged Wise. Wise took a deep breath. Step by step Wise observed as they got closer and closer to the edge of the platform. Opening his mouth, it began to glow purple as he built up energy, the blade-like appendages of his body lit up the same purple hue starting from the top of his tail and making its way up his spine.

As the energy reached his head, his eyes began to glow like fire. In one motion Wise roared, with it a breath of ether energy ravaged all in front of him. The ethereals leading the charge fell one by one, they’re corpses burning from the ether breath. Goblins and blastcrawlers evaporated. Rangers fell backwards, their bodies falling apart. The Hati being more resilient could only attempt to escape only to fail. By the time Wise ran out of breath his reserves were empty, his work on full display. The metro was scorched, a combination of ether and embers caused the concrete to glow. No ethereals were left standing. Striding up the middle of the massacre, the ethereal form of Wise stood at its center in all of its majesty. His form now a mix of a knight and reptile. And with a roar, Wise announces to New Eridu his first victory. The hollow having its ethereals defeated and its ether absorbed began to collapse. As the barrier between the hollow and reality faded, so did Wise’s ether body. Once it fully evaporated Wise took a wobbly step forward and collapsed in exhaustion, his body riddled with bruises, his clothes torn.

Chapter Text

On the train the people began to relax. The conductor announced that they can safely exit the hollow as the exit happens to follow the metro tracks perfectly.

Outside they will be examined by HAND in the event of ether corruption and escorted to the hospital if need be. As Belle regains her composure, she restarts her conversion with general chop. “Did you say someone looking like an ethereal saved everyone? And what about Wise? What happened to my brother?”

“Excuse me young lady, by brother do you mean a tall white haired young man with a blue jacket?” An old woman interrupted.

“Yeah that’s him! That’s wise, have you seen him?” Belle says. She stops herself from grabbing at the old woman but retains a look of worry.

The old woman looks at her with a slightly down expression. “Yes I’ve seen him, he helped me to the station when I was knocked down. We both made it down the steps of the station before telling me to head to the trains. Soon after the ethereals attacked and people started running around. It was hard keeping track of anything” the granny says.

“Hey Belle don’t worry! I’m sure Wise is fine. He’s probably in another cart. Thanks to that er…knight. Yeah knight! Everyone got onto the train safe and sound.” General Chop says with a boisterous laugh. Contrary to his light-hearted tone, general chop was extremely worried. His years as a chef has developed his attention to detail and during the commotion he made sure to remember everyone, especially his regulars to make sure they were accounted for. Yet he didn’t see Wise among the crowd, but he didn’t have the heart to tell Belle that just yet.

As the train made its way further through the tunnel and away from the previous battleground an explosion was heard. The cart rocked a bit, but was otherwise ok. Murmurs circulated the cart, all talking about the thing that saved them. “What actually was that thing? Looking back on it, that thing was definitely an ethereal. Its characteristics were like that of a fiend, but skinnier.” One person says.

The bunny thiren Asha chips in “whatever it is it was definitely protecting us. And this here video footage proves it. It acted as some kind of knight in shining armor,” she says as she happily summoned a video of Wise swatting away blastcrawlers with a vending machine.

Elfy the owner of bardic needle chips in this time, “like a hollow knight?”

The Tin master responds with delight “oh my! Hollow knight! Now that rings a bell. Yes, let us call it the Hollow knight!” Many evacuees responded positively to the name. Why place your trust in an ethereal when you can pretend it’s a hero instead?

Looking around Belle was slightly shocked that everyone was so lighthearted despite the disaster they just went through. Then again, as far as she knew, this was the best result. It didn’t seem like anyone was seriously hurt or worse dead. Wise’s location aside, she was sure that Fairy or Wise’s skills got him out of the hollow. The only question she had left was about this “Hollow Knight.” What is it actually, is it working for anyone and will she ever get to encounter it?

A few minutes later the metro successfully exited the hollow, in the distant station a bunch of hand operatives and equipment were present. A makeshift quarantine zone was set up to treat the residents of sixth street; those needing more advanced care were immediately taken to the hospital.

Striding up to Belle who exited the train first in order to look for her brother was Pub Sec’s Special Response Team consisting of Seth, Qingyi and Captain Zhu Yuan. Being the first to greet her, Zhu was the one who responded first “Belle! Are you alright? We responded as soon as we could when we heard the news. And where’s Wise? I expected him to be with you.”

Belle looks around in worry “I’m fine, I made it out first and came back for everyone else. As for my brother, I’m hoping he shows up soon. I didn’t catch him on the train so I don’t know if he’s safe.” A notification from Belle’s Phone alerted the group. Taking out her phone, Belle sees Fairy light up the screen before speaking.

“Second assistant. My scanners last indicate the master being in the metro after the first evacuation of residents, but was soon lost after. There is a 83.7% chance the master is still in the hollow.” Everyone tensed, Qingyi and Zhu exchanged a glance.

Seth steps forward and exclaims “don’t worry, we’ll find the manager as soon as possible. You can count on us!” You can always count on Seth to be optimistic, but the reality of the situation is dire. Belle worries that Wise’s low ether aptitude means the clock is ticking. But hey he could have escaped the hollow already.

“What’s going on over here? Nya!” A high pitched voice interrupts the small group. Two tails swirled around as Nekomata followed by the rest of the cunning hares arrived. Belle gasps as she remembers the mission.

“Oh my gosh! You guys are ok! What happened? Did backup arrive in the nick of time?” Belle says rapidly. Anby steps forward.

“Reinforcements did in fact arrive. However, they did not help in the way you imagined.” Anby says, her face growing serious. “The hollow we were in disappeared and with it the ethereals.” She looks around, observing the situation. “It seems a hollow formed on Sixth Street, a coincidence?” She ponders.

Nicole brushes back her hair and speaks “oh? And where is the other proxy? Is he hiding somewhere?”

Seth speaks up “no, we have reason to believe he is still in the hollow.”

The Cunning Hares tenses up. And Billy who was silent before quickly blurts out “What!? How long has it been? He was really banged up the last time he spent extended time in a hollow! Nicole even had to bring him back to life!”
Nicole blushes remembering what she had to do to save the proxy before. Seeing this, Zhu narrowed her brows and turned to Nicole.

“What are you talking about? How did you bring Wise back to life?” She says in a calm, but firm manner.

Nicole looks away quickly and tries to play it off.
“Never mind that, we need to look for the proxy, remember?” Dodging the question Nicole quickly scurried away. The rest of the cunning hares quickly follow suit.

“We’ll do what we do best nya” Nekomata says with a bounce.

“We shall complete the mission. Objective, save the manager.” Anby says robotically.

Billy strikes a pose before making his exit, “a starlight knight never fails” and with that he chases after his team. They didn’t get far however as the hollow pulsed grabbing everyone’s attention. With all eyes on it, the hollow grew slightly larger than shrunk down a bit and repeated this process until it began to rapidly shrink and fade away. A sweat dripped down Belle’s face.

“It’s…shrinking?” She says in confusion. “But how? No hollow has ever been reported to disappear right after forming.”

Zhu was the first to respond, snapping out of her confusion she issued her orders. “Qingyi do we have any data about this phenomenon?”
With a slight glow in her eyes Qingyi looked over Pub Sec’s database.

“Negative, no information matches what we are seeing,” Qingyi said. Everyone could only watch as the hollow grew smaller and smaller. The buildings that once were engulfed by the hollow were reappearing. Minor damage could be seen, but nothing noteworthy. As the hollow grew small enough to hide behind the buildings everyone began to relax.

The disaster was somehow avoided and with little casualties at that.

Fairy chimes in “warning ether activity levels increasing to dangerous levels.”

Belle pulls out her phone again and asks fairy “What are you talking about fairy, the hollow is disappearing. How could ether activity be icrea-“ a roar cuts her off, everyone turning to its direction. Many civilians and rescue workers gathered towards the direction of the roar, pointing and talking amongst themselves.

Fairy comes alive once again. “Enemy detected. A powerful ethereal reading is nearby.”

Seth steps up a bead of sweat rolling down his side. “An ethereal reading appearing after the disappearance of a hollow? Captain, do you think this is related to what we learned at Scott outpost?”

Zhu Yuan bites her lip “we can’t rule anything out. Qingyi you’re with me, Seth lead a team to search for any more survivors.” With that, Pub Sec dispersed into the city.

“The more the merrier they say” Nicole says as she and her team make their way towards Sixth Street.

Unfortunately the Cunning Hares couldn’t get far as they were not authorized to enter by H.A.N.D personnel.

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Various teams of Pub Sec officers and HAND operatives searched through Sixth Street. Ether readers scanned each surface, appliance and business. Civilians who were hiding in their homes were rescued and treated. Families were reunited and the damage was accessed. Zhu Yuan and her team strode up to random play. Turning to a nearby officer, Zhu Yuan saluted the officers immediately in front of the video store. “Damage report” she says sternly.

The officer salutes back and responds “so far we have little structural damage and no one is seriously hurt. Unfortunately, we found a few broken homes with scratches and torn clothes on the walls and floor. Judging from the info in our database, the homes with these characteristics belonged to those with low ether aptitude.” Zhu yuan nods and turns away, looking at random play. From the front door Qingyi steps out. Zhu Yuan looks at her expectantly. Only to receive a head shake.

Seth comes running down from the arcade and gives his commanding officer a salute. “Captain! We’re done investigating this area. Report shows that many ethereals ramapaged in the direction of the metro. Besides slight damage to the buildings, there is nothing else to report.”

“Very good, proceed to investigate the metro.” She pauses and thinks for a moment. “Actually, come with me. I will lead the investigation” she says as a small group of pub sec and hand makes their way towards the metro. Zhu Yuan grows expectant that Wise managed to escape the hollow considering there’s no body, but also a slight sense of dread due to the fact that there’s no sign of him. “Wise, please be alright” she thought to herself. Making their way to the metro they immediately noticed signs of a struggle. The shutter gates are dented in, something outside forced its way in. Going inside the metro the hand operative’s ether measurement device alarms them.

“High level of ether activity up ahead.” An operative says. Zhu Yuan nods. “That wasn’t a good sign” she thought.

Going down the stairs, the slight smell of burning material wafted through the air. Zhu takes out her pistol, the rest follows her lead. Going down slightly more they can see the residue of the ether breath on the walls and floor, the floor still glowing from the heat. The agent’s eyes widened “I’ve never seen anything like this, what in the world happened here?” She says in shock.

“That was the question,” Zhu thought. Shining a flashlight into the metro she illuminated the darkness. Scanning the charred marks and seeing where they originated from she gasps as she sees a body on the tracks. “Civilian down! I repeat, civilian down!” She exclaims before rushing over and crouching over the person. Turning the man onto his back she froze. “M-manager?” She mumbled.

Qingyi steps up and analyzes his condition “good we found him and with no sign of corruption either” she says with a smile.

Seth steps forward to take a look. And blushes. “Ahem, Captain. You uh, probably shouldn’t hold him so close. Maybe we should get him a blanket or something.” Looking at Seth in confusion, Zhu turns back to Wise. And looks down. Hard. Longer than she needed to.

While her brain was processing Wise’s condition, her face began to become as red as her tomatoes. She was so caught up on finding Wise that she did not take into consideration his entire condition. That is his torn clothes that barely covered any part of his body. Quickly standing up she stuttered out a command for medics to escort Wise out of the metro.

After a team of medics put Wise on a stretcher and carefully lifted him up the flight of stairs, Zhu quickly slapped her cheeks and put on her serious face. Going back into investigation mode she looked over the scene once again. “Qingyi. What do you make of this?” Obviously a battle took place here, but for so much destruction to happen, what kind of ethereal could cause such a thing?

Qingyi ponders the scene for a moment before speaking up “from what I’ve gathered, the civilians stated that a dog-like ethereal broke through the wall by the tunnel, causing the people to panic. As the first group of people tried to board the train to evacuate, a fight broke out between the ethereal and an unknown combatant that some witnesses say was an ethereal itself. They fought by the pillars, destroyed one and the ethereals outside broke through the shudders and into the metro while group two were evacuating. Yet looking at the damage here it seems that all of this damage was caused by one individual.”

Qingyi closes one of her eyes and holds up a finger like it was a matter of fact and continues “looking at the largest piece of evidence, the scorched ground. We can see that it came from only one direction meaning we can assume that all of the damage was deliberate. Whoever did this intended to wipe out all of the ethereals in one go.”

“So what is it, some kind of ether infused flamethrower?” Zhu spoke up. She had many questions, the foremost is why was Wise lying on the ground unconscious on the supposed battlefield. Besides being unconscious he’s otherwise uninjured for a non combatant in a dire situation. Thinking about Wise's defenseless body made Zhu yuan embarrassed again and she shook her head to refocus.

Qingyi gives her insight once again “it could be, although my records show that no one has ever used such a weapon before, it should be easily recognizable in future cases however as the aftermath is impossible to keep hidden” she says as she gestures towards the scorch marks

Zhu yuan nodded. A H.A.N.D agent came up to the captain. “I’m sorry to interrupt your investigation captain. I understand that Hand and Pub Sec doesn’t always see eye to eye, but H.A.N.D had just issued an official order to hand over this case and all gathered evidence.”

Zhu yuan stared at him for a moment. And with a deep breath nodded her head. “Understood, please fill out the paperwork for the transfer of this case back at headquarters.” With that Zhu walks back up the stairs. Qingyi prepares to follow before catching something shiny in the corner of her eye. Down by the tracks a obsidian like ether crystal pulsed a slight purple hue before fading. Quickly looking around, Qingyi grabs the glowing spike before pocketing it.

Scott Outpost was bustling, soldiers came in and out of the territory carrying supplies, recruits and precious research samples from the hollows. Researchers tested various experiments, analyzed data and argued amongst themselves over the happenings of the three great hollows. The head researcher Ray however was more focused about the companion hollow that appeared on Sixth Street and almost immediately disappeared.

“A nearby hollow shifted and changed location? How is that possible? What could have caused it?” Ray thought to herself. “The investigation team assigned to help with the evacuation order in the city came back with high levels of ether activity as a hollow was disappearing, followed by a monstrous roar.” She looked down into the map of the city. “This reading is the same as the one from a few weeks ago. A powerful ethereal was definitely here, but how did it disappear into thin air?”

Ophelia overhearing Ray’s concern chips in “since hollows have the ability to shift space. Is there a possibility that there was an ethereal that can spawn a hollow on top of it to get around?” Ray looks at Ophelia for a moment. Thinking of the possibility.

“There are ethereals that can teleport within a hollow, but spawning one requires a massive amount of energy and it’s simply inefficient to get rid of the every thing that sustains them. But that begs the question. How are they sustaining themselves?” Taking a look at the location once more she noticed a small detail: the location is a familiar one. “That’s where the private investigator lives,” she thought.

Turning to her assistant she issues a command “I need you to fetch the private investigator for me, his insight will be invaluable.” Thinking about Wise Ray gives a slight smile. The assistant however gave a slight frown before looking away awkwardly.

Mustering up her courage she speaks up “yeah that would be rather difficult at the moment.” Ray turns to look her in the eye.

“What do you mean difficult?” Ray asked with a tilted head.

“The private investigator was caught up in the sixth street hollow. He was found unconscious in the metro, and as of this moment he is hospitalized.” After finishing her report she steps back, observing Ray’s expression.

Ray puts down her clipboard and walks to the entrance of the tent. “Which hospital is he in?” Ray asks.

“New Eridu Emergency Hospital in the Janus quarter” the assistant responds.

Ray nods and walks away. Roland watches as she exits the compound, his fist clenched slightly as it begins to drizzle. “What a terrible day for rain” he thought as he watched Ray get escorted off the base.

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The sounds of the heart monitor echo in the hospital room. Wise, hooked up to various machines lay unconscious. Various voices can be heard in the hospital room. “Minor bruises littering his body, no signs of ether corruption, no prior history of illness and a minor concussion. I’m sorry miss, It’s hard to say what’s the cause of his condition. Until then you’ll have to wait for him to wake up. If anything happens let the front desk know and we’ll be sure to act swiftly” The doctor said as he exited the room.

Belle sat besides Wise’s bed, a worried expression adorned her face. She held onto Wise’s hand not saying a word. A little green maid tried to cheer Belle up, “hey don’t worry master proxy, I’m sure the other proxy will wake up soon!”

Without even mustering up a smile Belle responded “thank you Corin, I appreciate you being here for me. You to Ellen.” Corin shows a beaming smile while Ellen snores on the hospital chair. Looking back down at her unconscious brother Belle thought “oh Wise, you know you should be more careful. What were you thinking staying behind like that? What would I do if I lost you?” Belle sobs, the thought of losing Wise scared her. Yet there were times like this when she was at her lowest that Wise would come through. Unfortunately this wasn’t one of those times as Wise did not wake up.

As Belle continued to sob away, Corin could only pat her back in reassurance until another visitor entered the room. Slightly levitating above the floor is the head maid of Victoria Housekeeping Alexandrina accompanied by Lycaon.
Lycaon steps forward with a slight bow, “master proxy, apologies for the late arrival and we do apologize for interrupting.” Lycaon could only close his eyes with slight regret after glancing down at the unconscious proxy. Rina however glided by the sleeping figure and leaned forward.

Taking her gloved hand, she brushed Wise’s hair to the side, examining his features. Belle, having wiped her tears, questioned Rina “Rina? What are you doing?” For a moment there Belle would have thought that Rina may have a thing for Wise, had she not explained herself.

“I can feel it, the electricity in his body is unstable.” Rina says with a sad look. Lycaon, being the educated gentleman that he is, quickly picked up on Rina’s brief comment.

Stroking his chin Lycaon chimed in “Ah I see, electricity is one of the most important reactions that occur in the human body. Electricity is responsible for transmitting information between the human body and the brain via nerve impulses. Meaning; Rina care to take it away?” Lycaon gestures back towards Rina.

Rina nodded and continued to address Belle “From what I can feel, the electricity in his body is currently being blocked in certain areas, resulting in a weaker charge that isn’t efficiently sending information to where it needs to go. If I were to compare him to a bangboo, he is essentially short-circuited. Meaning if my hypothesis is correct, I may be able to unclog his “electro clots” using the same techniques I use to message Drusilla and Anastella.” Belle, having taken in the information as best she can, only nodded as her mind started to fry.

“But Rina, Wise isn’t a bangboo-” Belle says before being cut off by a sleepy ellen.

“Course’ not, he’s cuter than any bangboo.” Ellen says with a yawn. Silence engulfed the room briefly, Ellen who was lazily staring at the wall, noticed the sudden change in noise level slowly widened her eyes and looked towards the group. Belle awkwardly staring in her direction, Corin blushing and covering her mouth with both her hands. Lycaon and Rina stifled a laugh. With a face that started growing more red by the second she quickly got onto her feet and started to defend herself in a hurry “I mean he's, you know, only a little cuter than a bangboo. Wait no! I m-mean…I’ll let myself out.” Ellen quickly says as she makes her way towards the door, only to get a face full of someone’s chest. “What the-” she blurted out before looking at the owner of the chest.
Belle, not having recognized the new guest, only stood up and questioned this woman “Uh hello? Can I help you?” Lycaon, who frequents hollow zero under Wise’s guidance, recognized the woman and spoke up.

“Madam Belle, this woman is the head researcher at Scott Outpost. She and Master Wise have a particular relationship where they share hollow related knowledge. From what I understand, your brother has helped Dr.Ray progress with her research by leaps and bounds.” Dr.Ray looked Belle over and hummed.

“I see. You are his sister? Are you just as brilliant as your brother?” Ray says with a chuckle. “Hold on, that’s not what’s important right now.” Ray walks up to Wise’s side observing his condition. “I’m here regarding the Sixth Street hollow that formed and disappeared just as quickly.” Ray glances up at Belle, “You were there weren’t you? I understand that this isn’t the best time, but any information helps. Any abnormalities? Sounds, vibrations or even an ethereal you’ve never seen before?”

Rina, who was waiting patiently, interrupted with a smile that somehow gave off killing intent. “Now now Ms.Ray. Belle is emotionally destraught right now. I don’t believe now is the time for questions. This is a hospital after all.” Her words were calm, but carried an edge. Causing everyone in the room to be more alert.

Ray of course kept calm, but proceeded to stick on topic regardless. “I understand, but regardless, a particularly powerful ethereal made an appearance in the sixth street hollow. Meaning New Eridu’s safety is on the line.” Everyone looked around at one another, trying to make sense of what Ray was saying.

Ellen, who has clamed down, spoke up on behalf of everyone “I’m sorry, but I think we need more context on what you’re talking about here.”

Corin who stayed silent spoke up as well, “ethereals are common in hollows and are always a threat to everyone’s saftey. What do you mean New Eridu’s safety is on the line?”

Ray looked slightly shocked and turned to Lycaon. “Oh I suppose our private investigator didn’t fill you in? Surprising considering you were always on his main team when exploring hollow zero.” Turning around to close the door Ray began to explain the situation of the unknown ether readings outside the hollows, her hypothesis on how an ethereal may be responsible for the readings and how a powerful ethereal known as Nineva and many other powerful ethereals may breach the hollow zero hollow and raze New Eridu to the ground.

Belle who already knew all of this feigned ignorance in order to keep her civilian profile “So, you mean my brother was helping you protect the city? And that we’re all at risk of ethereals existing outside of hollows?” Ray nodded along.

“Yes, unfortunately without your brother in commission and our time running out; I have no choice but to question anyone who was present in the Sixth Street Hollow. I’m sorry Belle, but New Eridu is at risk, I can’t afford to be polite.”

“Understood, but unfortunately I can’t help you. I was swept along with the first group of evacues early on. The only one’s who experienced ethereal related matters are the one’s who were left behind. That includes my brother.” Belle says as she turns back to Wise with a sad look.

Ray ponders for a minute before turning to Rina, “you said something about Wise and electro clots. Meaning, you have a way to wake him up?”

Rina shook her head before explaining, “not quite Ray, you see, I can help regulate the electricity in his body to help him recover, but whether or not it wakes him up depends entirely on luck.” Everyone who had hopes that Rina could wake Wise up was visibly slumped.

Lycaon who tried to change the subject suggested to Rina “As a member of Victoria Housekeeping, we do everything in our power to ensure that our master is well taken care of. Rina, even if it doesn’t give us the desired result. Would you care to take care of Master Wise and his short circuit problem?” Corin and Belle looked at Rina expectantly, off in the distance Ellen was leaning against the wall, one eye open and staring into Rina’s back.

“My my~ With so many people depending on me, I have no choice but to offer services befitting the head maid of Victoria Housekeeping.” With that Rina hovered back towards Wise’s side and placed both her hands ontop of his chest and head. With a slight charge coming off of her fingertips she began tracing Wise’s nerves and kneaded her fingers into his flesh. Wise’s body twitched. Corin and Belle jumped, expecting Wise to wake up.

Ray interjects “don’t get your hopes up girls, muscle spasms usually occur during electrical interactions with your muscles.” The girls deflated, Ellen clicked her tongue. After a moment Rina finishes, content with her work.

“That should do it.” Rina says with a smile. Everyone waited with bated breaths. Yet Wise did not wake up, the only change to happen was the heart monitor showing slightly more spikes on its screen. Although small, it was proof that the electrical functions in his body were better than before.

Corin was the first to speak up “Ms.Rina, now that you helped master manager, when do you think he’ll wake up?” Lycaon placed his hand on Corin’s shoulder before giving her a light shake of the head. Corin looked down in disappointment.

“Well, as interesting as that was to watch. I still need some questions answered, so I’ll be heading back to Scott Outpost, give me a heads up if the private investigator wakes up.” Ray said. She said her goodbyes before taking her leave, Rina, Lycaon and Ellen following soon after to attend to other matters.

Not much has happened for the rest of the day with the exception of nurse’s and doctors coming in and out of the room. Belle, accompanied by Corin staying till night.

“Belle, it’ll be ok. We’re all cheering for the master proxy to wake up, but you still need to take care of yourself. Please have dinner with me and get some rest. I’m sure your brother will wake up soon.” Corin clenched both her fist and tried to encourage Belle.

Belle, who was resting her head on Wise’s chest, slowly turned her head towards Corin with dead eyes. After closing them for a moment, light returned in her eyes and she let out a deep sigh. “Yeah you’re right Corin, thanks for being here with me” Belle said. “Let’s go get hotpot!”

Corin lets out a noise of agreement and the two make their exit. As Wise continues to sleep, so does another day in New Eridu.

On the car Ride back to HQ, Lycaon discussed upcoming business. Rina gazed out the window absent mindedly. “Rina? Rina are you listening?” Lycaon says.
“Oh!” Rina squealed. “Ahem, do forgive me. I was a bit distracted.” Rina says, blushing slightly.

Lycaon gave Rina a gaze, the one he gave her to share thoughts. Rina in response shook her head. “It's nothing sir lycaon. Just my imagination playing tricks on me.”

Giving a curious glance, Lycaon prodded further “Oh? And what do you mean by that?”

Rina looked at Lycaon for a moment before looking in the rear view mirror, the hospital growing smaller in the distance. “It must be my imagination, but for a moment I could have sworn the electricity in master Wise’s body fought back against my own.” Looking down at her gloved hands, she observed her fingertips. Lycaon hummed in acknowledgement as he drove into the night.

Chapter Text

In the headquarters of Public Security located in Lumina Square, a loud yell rang out from the special criminal investigations office.

“You what!?” Yelled a shocked Zhu Yuan. Her face showed a look of disbelief. In the corner of the office Seth could only look between captain Zhu and Qingyi while scrolling interknot as the latter revealed that she had picked up an important piece of evidence from the sixth street hollow disaster.

Qingyi who first took a sip of tea, then summoned a ziplock bag with said evidence. A spike of unknown material that she had noticeably recognized had lost its purple glow.

After taking another sip of tea, Qingyi finally responded “calm down captain, don’t think I didn’t notice how you reacted when HAND took over our case. Seeing as how this involves the manager, I figured you’d want a shot at solving this case.” Zhu yuan for her part did step back and pondered the pros and cons of Qingyi’s actions before ultimately shaking her head.

“Qingyi, thank you for your consideration. But we already processed the paperwork. This case is out of our hands. What you did was tamper with the crime scene, there are protocols to this Qingyi.” Zhu yuan said while falling onto her desk chair. Taking a deep sign she let her head hit her desk. “I do want to help the managers, but there’s not much we can do.”

Before Qingyi could speak, she was beaten to the punch by Seth who quickly stood up, his chair hitting the wall behind him. “Guys! You have to come see this! It’s video footage from the metro!” Qingyi and Zhu upon hearing this, quickly made their way around Seth’s computer. A video of a tall green and white figure stood as it held a small boy in its arms.

Zhu yuan swiftly replayed the video from the beginning and began absorbing every detail. The start of the video shows an injured civilian who's coughing and breathing heavily. Then the camera shifted to reveal a lot of civilians piling into the metro in an attempt to escape, all of the screaming, before capturing footage of the canine ethereal knocking people around. “He’s panicked, he was probably knocked around by that ethereal and decided to hide just off the platform while taking video evidence as he recognized that he can’t escape on the train this time around. This can help with the investigation. But it doesn’t show everything. This wall on the right is blocking a portion of the platform so we can’t see the full picture” Qingyi announced. “Wait!” She gasps. Pointing to a small boy in the corner “There! The ethereal is targeting the child!” Evidently, the ethereal slowly walked towards the boy, his cries to live fell on deaf ears as no one stepped up to help.

Seth, who didn’t completely watch the video, winced as he regretted not being able to help. Zhu yuan stared angrily at the ethereal, yet didn’t take her eyes off the screen as she had a duty to see what was about to happen. The Hati charged up and leapt towards the boy. Right before it could land directly on top of the boy however, a figure from just beyond the video frame appeared like lighting. The next moment a crash can be heard in the video as the ethereal could be seen imprinted on the wall, back toward the boy an outstretched fist and a white armored individual can be seen gently holding the boy.

“That…what is that? Who is that?” Asked Zhu yuan. A part of her was relieved that this individual saved the child, but her instincts told her that this wasn’t your average individual. After all, he sent an armored Hati flying with what looked like a single punch.

Seth interjected once again “that body, it looks like an ethereal. Like completely like one. That isn’t any kind of military authorized armor I’m aware of.”

Qingyi, who was quietly watching, took a look at the spike once again. “The figure doesn’t have the same spikes as this one.” She thought. “Could it belong to a different ethereal instead?”

The rest of the video didn’t help much either. The ethereal-like figure let go of the joy and kept its distance from the other evacuees. The civilian who was taking the video soon climbed on top of the platform and joined the rest of the civilians and soon after continued to record the figure as it fought off waves of ethereals that breached the metro, defending them in the process. Many screams and explosions can be heard before the video abruptly ends.

Zhu was lost in thought, trying to process this information. Qingyi was also doing her analysis of the video. Leaving Seth alone, he quickly tried to contribute any way he could. “Hey look! We don’t know who or what this guy is, but here in the title and comments it looks like the people are giving it the name Hollow Knight! So we can at least know what to refer it as.”

Zhu and Qingyi exchanged glances before forming a small smile. “Ahem. Thank you for bringing this to our attention officer lowel. Now return to your duties until further notice.” Zhu says with a salute. Walking back to her desk, Zhu yuan motioned for Qingyi to follow. “Qingyi, about before. I’m sorry for being such a square. I’m…curious to say the least about this Hollow Knight and its relation to Wise’s condition. Maybe if it’s a person, it can tell us what happened during the chaos.”

Qingyi nodded in agreement, “Agreed, our best course of action is to investigate on our own to track down this individual and pry it for information. Or in the worst case, eradicate it.”

“You think it’s that ethereal we learned about at Scott Outpost? The one that can exit the hollow?” Zhu yuan responded.

Qingyi walked back to her desk and sipped her now cooled tea. “Anything is possible, too early to tell. Need to investigate more.

Zhu yuan sighed from frustration. Her thoughts trailing towards her old friend Miyabi. “Should I investigate together with section six?” She thought before getting back to work.
————————————————————
Back on Sixth street, approximately a week had passed since the initial hollow disaster swallowed the area hole and disappeared just as quickly. Since barely any damage had been done, everyone was able to get back to their daily routines. Howl the dog was selling the latest news about the hollow disaster, the arcade was bustling with a bunch of kids playing their favorite games and general chop was serving a few of his regulars. Every now and then he would glance towards Random Play as it became public knowledge amongst the residents of Sixth Street that one of the store managers did not get out unscathed. General chop sighed heavily just thinking about it. How could he be in good spirits when one of his dear regulars is gravely injured. He couldn’t even look Belle in the eye when he heard the news, feeling responsible for not finding Wise sooner. He could only offer her free food to help her get through these tough times.

His thoughts returned to reality however as he overheard a couple of his patrons talking about an interesting topic. “Hey, did you hear about this powerful dude who saved a bunch of people here on Sixth street?” An excited businessman said.

His colleague in response was not too happy about it. “Don’t be fooled, if we’re talking about the hollow knight then you best not get too invested. Some expert hollow investigators have been talking about it on the interknot. That thing that saved those people was confirmed to be an ethereal. Who knows why it did what it did. Probably wanted to take out all of the people by itself.” His friend responded in denial.

“You can’t trust people to be truthful on the interknot too much! There was a video of the whole ordeal.The Hollow Knight saved people. Saved a boy! Even let him go afterwards. If that wasn’t heroic then I don’t know what is.” His colleague could only shake his head in disbelief.

“What was that about not trusting people? Look, you should look at things realistically here. I think I'm more willing to believe a seasoned expert on hollows and ethereals over some guy with an ethereal themed costume. As to why it saved those people, I don’t know.”

The conversation kept going back and forth as the two patrons finished their noodles. General Chop who had been listening in on the conversation thought back to that day in the metro. The only logical explanation to that mysterious figure was that it was some kind of dude in an ethereal themed outfit or maybe a weaponized ethereal. Otherwise, how else would it be so well behaved? Well it didn’t matter too much to Genereal Chop since there were few casualties.

The sound of a bell and a door opening caught his attention. Belle exited Random Play followed by a pair of maids. Heading to the hospital to visit Wise and heading back late was her daily routine. As Belle and friends made their way to the metro she gave a wave to General Chop. “She’s getting better,” he thought. With a content smile General Chop got back to managing his restaurant.

A pair of pub sec officers passed by his shop and headed to random play.

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Back at the hospital there has been no change with Wise’s condition. Both the Cunning Hares and Victoria Housekeeping have taken turns keeping Belle company during her visits. Besides the occasional check up from doctors, there was no new visitors or information regarding the Hollow Knight or the Sixth Street hollow. As Belle was browsing a fashion magazine and discussing new outfits with Ellen, a new visitor entered the room. This time it was officers Zhu Yuan and Qingyi. Both smiled and waved before walking up to Wise’s bed.

The first to speak was Zhu Yuan “Belle and I believe your name was Ellen? Sorry we haven’t visited sooner, there was a lot to do in the aftermath of what happened.” She looked over at Wise’s sleeping form. A sad look washed over her. “Any news about Wise?”

Belle returned the smile and spoke with more gusto than a week before “Hey, it's you two. I’ve been wondering when you guys would make an appearance. As to Wise, there has been no progress. The doctor said Wise would wake up on his own, but we don’t know how long that would take.” Belle Sighed, not wanting to remember the situation. Qingyi spoke next, bringing this conversation towards business.

“If I may, although we don’t have any evidence, we believe Wise’s unconscious condition may have a correlation to what the public refers to as the “Hollow Knight”.”

Belle stood up quickly, a glare forming on her face. “Wait a second, are you telling me this Hollow Knight guy is responsible for my brother’s condition? Actually hold on, this is the second time I heard of a Hollow Knight, what’s that about?”

This time Ellen spoke up upon hearing that name. “Hm? You mean you haven’t heard about the Hollow Knight Belle? It’s just what everyone has been talking about these days ever since a video was uploaded on the interknot.” Ellen whipped out her phone to show Belle the video. To which she analyzed, her experience as a proxy allowed her to encounter numerous ethereals. Yet this one eluded her. The structure of the ethereal looked familiar, but she couldn’t quite remember where she'd seen it before.

That was until she recalled watching some footage Eos had taken when Wise was working in the Outer Ring. She gasps sharply, all eyes focused on her reaction. Quickly she exclaimed “I remember now, this body shape, it looks like the corrupted form of the former overlord of the Outer Ring.”

“What do you mean by that Belle?” Zhu Yuan asked?

“I just remembered that I recently looked over footage that Eos recorded and that the Hollow Knight looked similar in structure to what Overlord Pompey looked like when he turned into an ethereal from ether corruption. Except that the hollow knight isn’t as tall and he looks more armored than Pompey.”

“So what you’re saying is, the Hollow Knight is one of the corrupted?” Qingyi interrupted, a hand resting on her chin.

Belle shook her head “it’s only a guess, there have been other ethereals that closely take after a humanoid shape as well like the Thracian or the marionette. All though in that last cause I believe that they are also one of the corrupted considering the history of the Ballet Twins.”

Zhu Yuan who had been taking notes on her little lad nodded along, “I see, so that could mean this individual could be someone who had low ether aptitude and transformed in the metro, but that begs the question, why didn’t it hurt anyone? This is what really bothers me. Ethereals always attack the innocent on sight, this has me believe that the hollow knight isn’t an ethereal, but rather a person.”

Qingyi quickly interrupted Zhu Yuan before she could continue to point out the possibilities. “Focus captain, we came to visit, not work. Whatever this thing is, we need to find him first.”

A blush adorned Zhu Yuan’s face as she spoke “aha, sorry. You’re right Qingyi, sorry about that everyone. Well, we should get going. There’s still a lot of work to do so we’ll let ourselves out. See you later.” Zhu yuan smiled and waved goodbye before turning around. Qingyi followed suit.

“Alright bye bye, stay safe you two” Belle said.
With a yawn Ellen also saw them off. Unbeknownst to the four, the spike belonging to the hollow knight began to glow in Qingyi’s back pocket as the two officers made their way towards the door. At the same time Wise’s unconscious body twitched slightly and a moment later he lurched forward, coughing up a storm.

Everyone snapped their heads towards Wise with wide eyes, their mouths slightly open. And like a rocket Belle lunged towards Wise, catching him in a tight hug. “Bro! I’m so glad you’re awake! Are you ok? How are you feeling?”

Silence returned to the room as Wise breathed heavily. Looking around he recognizes that he’s in a hospital room and that he’s surrounded by familiar faces. “What happened? Belle, why are you hugging me?” He asked, his mind still foggy.

Belle pouted “you had me worried sick with that stunt you pulled back there! You’re lucky Zhu Yuan and Qingyi found you before anything bad happened to you!” Ellen swooped up behind Belle and gently pulled her back.

Both Zhu and Qingyi returned towards Wise’s bedside, a smile adorned their faces. The first to speak to him was Qingyi “welcome back to the world of the living manager. You’ve been in a coma for approximately one week. And no, that's not a joke.”

Wise’s eyes widened as he processed the information. Despite wanting to panic, he kept his cool “I’ve been out for one week?” He questioned. He tried to recall his last memory. “Let’s see, I remember helping an old lady into the metro, then I went down the stairs and all of a sudden an ethereal burst through the wall.” Like lightning he recalled the Hati that was moments away from crushing a little boy and he winced. “I was too late” he said as he lowered his head and gripped his sheets tightly.

The girls looked at each other and back at Wise with concern. “What’s wrong Wise, what were you late for?” Belle asked.

Wise was shook, mustering up his courage. He spoke of his experience “the last thing I remember was a Hati attacking people and its last victim before I blacked out was a little boy.” He sat there in silence, with closed eyes, he allowed regret to consume him.

Until Ellen spoke up “do you mean this boy?” Once again she showed her phone with a video of the hollow knight saving the little boy from a gruesome death. Wise looked up, watching the video before snatching Ellen’s phone and replaying the video, getting a closer look at the scene playing before him.

His shoulder slumped and he took a deep breath, a sigh of relief. Giving the phone back to Ellen he gave a relieved smile. “Yeah that’s him, I’m so glad he was saved.” Then he paused for a moment and sat there in silence, waiting for others to continue the conversation like the introvert he is.

Belle broke the silence. “Well? What do you think bro?”

“Hm?” Wise responded.

Before Belle could continue, Zhu Yuan who hadn’t had the chance to speak to Wise restlessly interjected, explaining the situation to him. “Ahem, we were just talking about the figure in the video that rescued the boy and was wondering whether you could shed some insight seeing as you were there when it happened.” After Zhu Yuan’s explanation, everyone waited expectantly for Wise’s reply.

“Wait, I’m sorry I don’t quite remember everything that happened. I blacked out around the time the ethereal attacked so I didn’t get to see who saved the boy," Wise said. In response, Ellen replayed the video, pausing on the hollow knight and showed it to Wise once more.

“So you’re telling us you didn’t see this ethereal looking dude come out of nowhere and knock this ethereal into next week?” Wise focused on the video once more, eyes locked on the ethereal looking figure. He tilted his head to the side, squinted and tilted it to the other side.

“As unbelievable as it sounds, yes. I must have blacked out right before it showed up. Now that I look at it, is it some kind of high tech suit? It’s not bulky enough to be a mech.” Wise began mumbling the possibilities, the characteristics and what he thought about this individual before being stopped by Qingyi.

“Sorry to interrupt your train of thought manager, but me and Zhu must get going. It’s apparent that you don’t have any information on this individual so we shall return to our investigation. Once again we are happy to see you awake, get well soon,” said Qingyi. With a smile and a nod she exited the room, a flustered Zhu Yuan looking back and forth between Wise and the door.

“Unfortunately we couldn’t talk much, but get well soon manager! Let’s spend some time together sometime soon,” Zhu yuan said before waving and leaving.

Turning to Ellen, Belle asked “hey Ellen, can you go grab the doctor? I want to let em to diagnose Wise.”

Ellen reluctantly got up from her cozy position and with a tired “sure,” she left the room in search of a doctor.

Turning back to Wise, Belle gave him a glare. “Do you have any idea how worried I was?” She stated.

Before he could respond however, Belle cut him off, “no excuses Wise. I care about our neighbors too, but we can’t afford to take unnecessary risks. We’ve gone through so much after losing our teacher, but we’ve always had each other to get through the bad times. If I’ve lost you, I don’t even want to think about what I would be able to do. I can’t imagine a world without you.” She began to sob, the fear of losing her only family crippled her reasoning.

Seeing his little sister cry caused Wise to instinctively pull her into a hug. Trying to console her he said “I’m sorry Belle. I was rash, a big idiot.”

“The biggest idiot,” Belle responded.

“The biggest idiot,” Wise repeated. “It’s just that, after all of this time. I believe we’ve made a difference. We have a new home, we’re surrounded by a bunch of friends that got our back. I want to protect them, I thought I could do it. I’m sorry, I saw someone who needed help so I sprung into action.” The memories of the chaos flashed through his mind. He froze, remembering the corruption, the metro.

With a sharp gasp he pulled Belle away and urgently told her what he remembered. How the corruption process was faster than normal, how his limbs transformed before he gained a core and how he experienced a full transformation whilst remaining conscious.

Belle was skeptical of course as no known case of an individual retaining their sanity after turning had been recorded. She kept the thought of Wise telling the truth in the back of her mind, but tried to convince him otherwise.

“Wise. You said you experienced faster than normal corruption?” She said. Wise nodded. “Then do you think that maybe you experienced a hallucination since you were deeply affected by ether corruption?”

Wise was taken aback, he paused for a moment and thought about it. “I don’t know, I thought I was sure of what was happening to me, but now that I think about it. It is kind of ridiculous.” He let out a weak chuckle. Yes, what Belle said makes sense. There was no way he could experience all that and be capable of fighting off ethereals by himself. If not for the video he saw, he wouldn’t have believed it either. But when he felt a part of him changing, he felt more daring. Bravery perhaps? Like he was given this new power and should use it to further their goals.

Looking back into Belle’s eyes, he made a decision. “Belle,” he started. “If by some chance I can really turn into an ethereal with all of my reasoning, I want to try it.” Belle shot up, rejecting the idea.

“No! Absolutely not! You’re forbidden. Wise I almost lost you, you don’t know if what you’re saying is true and even if it does, your life will change forever. For god's sake, you were in a coma for an entire week! Think about what you’re doing to yourself, to me!” She crashed back into his arms.

Cradling her, Wise did what any brother would do. He promised not to risk it, accepting the theory of him hallucinating, he layed back down. “You’re right Belle, I’ll be careful.”

Soon after, Ellen rejoined the proxy siblings followed by a doctor who gave them the rundown. Miraculously, Wise was fine. His bruises healed rapidly and he was only mildly malnourished, he was given the green light to go home tomorrow.

With good news and more questions, the three talked until the sun set. Jumping between the mission with the cunning hares, the hollow knight and whatever topics Wise missed whilst he was out.

Chapter Text

A few days passed by as Wise was discharged from the hospital. Returning to his regular routine wasn’t all that difficult, but being constantly greeted by various friends and acquaintances was a bit of a hassle. Various residents of Sixth St. would come visit Random Play in order to give their congrats on the discharge and a clean bill of health. Which, although nice, was also getting in the way of proxy work. Luckily he could switch off with Belle as she’s been carrying the Phaethon name as of late. General Chop was especially happy to see Wise up and about as he offered to give the siblings a few rounds of noodles on the house, which the siblings gladly took up.

Sitting at the counter the two discussed upcoming plans for the video store as well as some hollow related matters. Since Wise was fit as a fiddle once more, he would have to report to Ray to learn about any developments on the escaped ethereal case along with all the other agents. As they continued to talk, the siblings were soon joined by a couple of unexpected visitors. A big brown hulking beast and a cute little pirate tomboy.

Sitting down, the two took a glance at the menu before ordering. “Hey boss, two bone broth noodles please,” Ben Bigger said as he held up two fingers. “Extra large portion for me.”

“Extra garlic and an egg for me,” the spicy gremlin said. Belle whipped her head to the left to look at the new arrivals and beamed with Joy.

“Ben! Koleda! It’s rare to see you two on Sixth Street. What brings you two here?” Belle says as she slurps her noodles down.

Koleda was the first to respond as she tears apart her chopsticks, “we’re on lunch and I happened to overhear Ben talking about not having Waterfall Noodles in a while.”

Wise chimed in after drinking all of the broth in his bowl “another bowl for me general chop.” With a smirk and a nod, general chop got to work. “Well you’ve come to the right place, General Chop makes the best noodles in all of New Eridu. But still, Ben is one thing, you on the other hand Ms.President m, you hardly ever leave the construction site.” Wise said as he grabbed the bowl of noodles set before him. Before chowing down, he took a moment to observe the two belebog employees.

With a slight blush, Koleda began to speak, but was interrupted by Ben who just finished his noodles. “She was worried about you, so we came in person, hey boss another round.” Wise could be heard asking the same thing. Almost immediately more broth and noodles were flung skillfully into both their bowls. With a big smile he slurped the delicacy down.

Koleda huffed and threw a small fit as she responded, “hey that’s not true! I mean I was a little concerned, but this outing was just for lunch ya hear?” Koleda settled down as she hastily resumed eating. Belle giggled in response. Dealing with Koleda was like dealing with a child, not that you should ever do that unless you wanted to be smashed by her hammer.

Belle, the social butterfly, expertly shifted the conversation to address more important matters. “I’m glad you came by to visit, but let’s change the subject shall we? Did you find anything strange under your supervision?” Looking around, Belle made sure to choose her wording carefully in the event of any eavesdroppers. Slurping down her first bowl of noodles and Ben’s third, they signaled for the check. Before dawning a serious expression.

“Another round for me,” said wise. This time General chop sweat dropped a bit as he gave another serving.

Not letting the two interrupt their conversation, Koleda continued. “Nothing, pearlman finished his investigation and we safely handed them over to your officer friend. However, using Grace’s babies, we looked through every inch of the hollows we were working on and found nothing.”

“We’ve been talking with some of the guys and it seems that the only thing out of the ordinary was the swarm of ethereals that attacked the cunning hares and of course the Sixth Street hollow,” Ben explained. A flash of thought crossed his mind as he did happen to recall a news article. “We did happen to cross an article though about an individual called the hollow knight. Thought you guys would like to know about it. Not to mention, there’s been an uproar with one of the shiyu pillars.

Giving a chuckle, Belle took a glance at Wise who was still slurping down noodles. “Yeah that’s pretty much what everyone’s been talking about nowadays, it’s been trending on the interknot like crazy. It almost even overthrew Astra Yao in rankings!” Then she did a double take and asked Ben for more information, “wait what do you mean there’s been an uproar with the Shiyu Pillars?”

As Ben and Belle conversed, they went back and forth about the latest news. Belle was visibly shocked, a worried expression crossed her face, before returning to a slight smile as the conversation went on. Having nothing to do, Koleda rested her head on the counter. She stared aimlessly until the face of a bewildered General Chop caught her attention. Following his gaze, she slowly got up, with furrowed brows and a slightly agape mouth; she interrupted the two. “Hey Belle.”

“Hm?” Belle responded. Wordlessly Koleda pointed right past her shoulder, never taking her gaze off of the sight before her. Turning around Belle looked at the only person to her right and then to the tower of bowls next to him.

Counting each bowl stacked on top of each other, she questioned her brother, “Wise?” In response Wise sat up, slurping the noodles in his mouth. “How are you able to eat so much?”

Looking around, Wise noticed the slightly shocked faces of everyone and shifted his gaze to the nearly stacked bowls on his left. Having realized that he downed 8 bowls of noodles, broth in all. He meekly responded “will you believe me if I said I was still hungry?”

The response flabbergasted not just the group, but every patron at Waterfall noodles. Snapping out of his astonishment, General Chop cut in, “look Wise, I wanted to treat you to a good home cooked meal. But I’m gonna have to cut you off here. If I offer you more, I’ll be incurring a loss. So reluctantly, you’ll have to pay for any more. I’m sorry boy.”

Blushing slightly from having standed out, Wise coughed into his fist. “I guess it’s just been a while since I've had such a tasty meal. Thank you for the food General Chop.” Taking a drink of water, Wise tries to participate in the conversation. However, Belle was not having it.

“Wise, are you sure you’re ok? You’ve never been such a big eater. Not to mention you got out of the hospital not too long ago,” Belle said, looking Wise up and down.

Wise gave a reassuring smile before a thought occured, “I’m alright, really. Besides feeling hungrier more often, I actually feel fine. Well, sometimes I do feel sluggish, but I'm chalking that up to the coma aftermath.” Koleda and Ben exchanged a glance and nodded, and soon they took control of the conversation.

The redhead continued, “Well then, I hope you’re feeling well enough for tomorrow.” Wise took a moment, trying to think about what tomorrow entailed.

“Uh, remind me again?” Wise said.

Ben responded in kind, “Since you asked Belebog Industries to search the hollows under our jurisdiction, tomorrow is about the time where we and the others you’ve befriended get together to share any info we found so that you can report to Scott Outpost remember?”

Wise nodded his head in agreement “oh right, thank you for the reminder. I’ll be sure to look into what we’ve got. I’m assuming we’re done here, so I'm gonna head back to Random Play. Once again, thank you for the meal General Chop. It was delicious as always.” With a wave and a smile, Wise walked away. The remaining three watched silently as he entered the store. Turning to eachother they gave a dawned a concerned look.

Ben placed his big fuzzy hand on Belle’s shoulder before speaking “look Belle, if you and your brother need anything, we’re one phone call away.”

Koleda spoke up as well “what he said. Look Belle, you’re brother. Is he alright?” Koleda didn’t want to be so forceful with her wording, but she also didn’t know how to speak gently. “Personally, I don’t know how much that guy could eat, but that amount of food in that body doesn’t seem normal.”

Belle sighed, recounting what Wise said in the hospital. The changes he spoke of when he was in the hollow. For a moment Belle thought that Wise could have been telling the truth, but that would mean he’s changing into something inhumane. And if word got out that Wise was an ethereal, then that means his life would be in danger. So at this moment until she could figure out conclusively what’s going on, she would need to hide her cards.

With a nonchalant smile Belle responded, “oh yeah it's that hospital food you know? Blandest material known to man. It's so hard, you can practically rebuild New Eridu with it.” Although she was joking around, she completely forgot she was joking around with literal construction workers who gave her a deadpaned look. With cheeks heating up from her lame joke, she mumbled an apology.

“Well, lunch is almost over and we need to head back to the construction site. Thanks for keeping us company Belle, tell your brother we hope he gets better. Thank you for the food chef,” Koleda said as Ben paid for their meal. After saying their goodbyes, the two made their way to the metro. Belle slumped onto the counter, worrying about what the future had in store.

Taking a moment to gather her thoughts, she resolved herself. Belle believed she should have been the one to take Wise’s place, but what’s done is done. So, all she could do was pick up the slack so he could take it easy. Thanking General Chop for the food, Belle headed back home. Ready for whatever came next.

“I was not ready for this,” Belle said as Qingyi stood before her and Wise, explaining that she was here for mandatory supervision after the Bringer incident.

“Apologies for dropping in managers, but I'm sure you recall that either me or Zhu Yuan are required to pay you two a visit every now and then in exchange for letting you two walk free. That and we’ll be confiscating the dennies from your Phaethon account as a fine,” Qingyi said.

With saucers for eyes, Wise turned towards Belle. “Belle, didn’t you tell me you moved those funds to a separate account?” Looking guilty, Belle put her hands up in defense. “Wait bro, please don’t be mad, I was going to tell you when things got better, but I may have slipped up and forgot to transfer the funds.” With a giggle, Belle tried to put on her best little sister act in order to survive the next five minutes.

WIth a frustrated sigh, Wise gave up on pursuing this matter “you know what, it's ok. We’re ok, that's all that matters.” Turning towards Qingyi, Wise asked “so what is it you’re supposed to do again? Are you gonna just stare at us work all day or?”

With a shake of the head, Qingyi smiled and with her matter of fact pose she spewed out the most random thing the proxies heard all day. “Since I have to look after one of you two, I want you manager to go fishing with me.”

“What?” Wise said in disbelief. Did he just hear the little automaton correctly?

“I have some friends in the Port Elpis fishing association and it just so happens that this year they’re holding a fishing championship in order to compete for the right to fish up a rare bioluminescent fish spotted near the reef. Only problem is that the first few rounds are for partners with the finals being a nominee from each pair. So with that said, I thought since I had to watch my two favorite proxies, I can kill two birds with one stone.” Qingyi said as she pulled out a flier with the competition on it. Both Belle and Wise read the flier carefully with Belle jumping with excitement.

Wise however was unsure of participating. “Look Qingyi, me and Belle have never fished before. I’m afraid we’ll only hold you down.”

Belle then interrupted excitedly “Wise! Look here at first place, winners get a large cash prize. Besides, this isn’t a catch and release contest. If we catch fish, then we can save a bit on food expenses. Just think about it, all the fish we can eat. So how about I hold the fort here and you can go get some fresh salty air.’” Belle began salivating at the thought of eating various seafood cuisine, fish soup, sashimi, sushi, grilled fish. Hearing this, Wise's stomach began to growl again, reminding him of his hunger.

Qingyi responded as if to settle any doubt within the managers “it’s alright managers. I’m not looking to win. Truthfully, I'm using up my vacation days so let's just have a good time.”

With that, Wise hesitantly agreed to Join Qingyi on her fishing trip. With a farewell, Qingyi headed back on patrol. Wise had a pretty packed schedule at this point. Tomorrow he had to talk to his agents on their findings, then later that day he would need to report their findings at Scott Outpost and the day after is a fishing trip with the fishing granny.

Putting his thoughts in order in terms of priority, Wise headed out. “Belle, would you mind handling the H.D.D for a while? I’m going to take care of some things in the city for the next few days.”

Belle, not seeing anything wrong with it nodded in agreement. “Alright bro, you can leave it to me.”

“Alright, I'm going to go to bed early. Maybe watch a movie or something. Good night Belle,” Wise said as he headed up the stairs. Taking a shower and getting into some fresh jammies, Wise threw his head onto his pillow and staired at the ceiling. Thinking about the year and everything that’s happened so far. With heavy eyes Wise began to drift off to sleep.

The next moment Wise felt a drip of water hit his face. Followed by another and the distinct sound of the sea breeze assaulted his ears. Sitting up quickly, Wise found himself no longer in his room, but on a small unfamiliar island. It was night, the seas a pitch black darkness. Yet the waters around the island were bright, illuminated by the moon. It was a sereal sight, the waters looked like it was an endless abyss. Catching the sight of his reflection in the water, what Wise failed to notice however, was that he was in his ethereal form. Yet it was slightly different than what he remembered. For one, he didn’t sport a tail the last time and second he was a lot more edgy.

With nothing else to do, Wise decided to walk around the pocket sized island. The exploration of the island took less than a few minutes as it was really just a small pocket of land. Sitting by the edge of the island, Wise dipped his toes in the water. He stared off into the horizon, looking for the city lights. Not seeing anything as far as the eyes can see, Wise looked into the darkness of the sea.

All of a sudden the skies darkened with clouds, rain began to drizzle, then soon a downpour.

“Oh that’s not good,” Wise said as he observed the environmental changes. “Wait what’s that?”

A light began to shine in the ocean, a light as bright as the star. Then another and another. Soon more and more lights filled the dark ocean depts as if the stars themselves were born from the sea before flying off into the night sky. The lights stretched out as far as the eyes can see, encasing the island. Taking his feet out of the water, Wise stepped back. He watched as the lights began to move, to dance around the small island. And as if they really were stars ascending into the skies, they began to rise out of the water. The sea level increasing with it. Next thing Wise knew, he was submerged underwater and he began to sink fast into the debts. Trying his hardest, Wise tried to swim as hard as he could towards the surface, but it was getting further and further out of reach.

With burning lungs, Wise continued to struggle as hard as he could to no avail. Passing his limit, he involuntarily let out the last of his air and began to drown. Each second his lungs screamed at him to stop, the feeling of swallowing water was painful for him. As Wise’s vision began to fade, he could only look to the lights that shone brilliantly in the dark depts. Before he completely faded off, he noticed a hulking figure in the darkness.

And with a cough and heavy gasps, Wise shot up from his bed covered in sweat. Panting his heart out, Wise surveyed his surroundings before calming down. With a deep sigh he mumbled to himself, “what is going on? Why do I keep having these kinds of dreams?”’ Looking to his bedrest, he picked up his phone to look at the time. “Early morning, might as well get the day started. There’s a lot of work to do.” Sending out a text to the leaders of various factions, Wise set up the H.D.D as a meeting place for the agents. He failed however to see the various news articles talking about a catastrophe that occurred a week prior.

|

A meeting was supposed to happen today between the proxies and their agents, plans did not go as expected however, as all agents save for Nicole sent a text back to Wise. The reason being is that none of them found anything out of the ordinary in the hollows they were in charge of. So they had no reason to come down to Sixth St. for a meeting. As for Nicole, she knew there would be free snacks so she let herself in.

Professionalism aside, the proxies could see why it would be a waste of time on everyone’s parts if the agents came down for no apparent reason. So, with nothing else to do the siblings opened the store with Belle on commission duty. Nicole decided to chat up Wise in the as he manned the counter.

“Well well proxy. While I'm here, is there anything you want to talk about? Remember, information doesn’t come free,” Nicole said with a wink.

Rolling his eyes and with a smirk on his face Wise responded “pretty sure there’s nothing you know that I need to know. So no Nicole. Say, don’t you have to get back to the cunning hares? You can take the snacks I prepared with you.”

With a beaming smile Nicole practically gleamed and jumped for joy “Really!? Ahem I mean thank you proxy. But before I leave, I just wanted to make sure that you’re ok. You know with the whole coma thing.”

Giving her a reassured smile, Wise nodded in reassurance. “I’m alright Nicole, really.”

Nicole however was not assured, her smile falling. “Wise. New Eridu is changing isn’t it? It’s going to become a lot more dangerous right?” To Wise’s surprise, Nicole has a somber serious side that he’s never seen before.

Taking a moment to think about what she said, Wise thought up a reply. Grabbing hold of her hand, Wise tried to reassure her. “It’s difficult to say for sure, but that’s why we’re here. Not just me and Belle as proxies, but with you, the cunning hares and all of the people of New Eridu. We’re all working together to get by in this hollow ridden world. So yes, it will be difficult, but we’ll overcome any adversity.”

After hearing his words of encouragement, a smile found its way back on Nicole’s face and with confidence she nodded. Afterwards, she grabbed whatever snacks she could carry and left the store, passing by a woman in a white uniform.

Seeing this person enter the chop, Wise quickly responded “I understand, i’ll be there shortly.” Turning towards the staffroom door, Wise yelled out, “Belle!”

A moment later he received a muffled “yuh” from Belle. “I’m heading to Scott Outpost for a bit, I'm leaving 18 in charge until you’re free.” To which he got a “mk” back.

Turning back to face the assistant, Wise gave a nod and grabbed his keys. A long drive and a bit of walking later, Wise found himself around Ray’s table. Many of the key figures surrounding it as well. This time however none of his friends were in attendance.

Ray was the first to respond. “Private investigator, glad to see you back on your feet. A lot has happened in your absence and I would like your input. Specifically your thoughts on the Sixth St hollow.”

With a hand resting on the back of his head Wise responded as truthfully as he could. “Well it was a scare for sure. At first everyone tried to evacuate into the metro and soon after a large swarm of ethereals appeared out of nowhere. The time between the hollows' emergence and the number of ethereals don’t quite match up.” It was best that I leave out the part where I corrupted faster than normal.

Ray looked over her reports and ether charts. She quickly put the information together and discussed the findings with Ophelia and Roland. Turning to Wise after their conversation, Ray dropped a bombshell, “Wise, there was another breach. This time however is more serious, the ether readings are off the charts. And I mean they’re comparable to Nineveh.”

As Ray finished explaining, Wise took a step back. Just by guiding his team in repelling Nineveh, he knew how powerful an ethereal of that level was. Yet fact of the matter is, he’s never seen what Nineveh was actually capable of seeing as they never managed to defeat it.

With a worried expression Wise responded, “So what is it? And where is it?” Roland was the next to step forward.

“As of right now we’ve lost the ether signal near the Port Elpis companion hollow. The ethereal in question broke free from Hollow Zero around one week ago, during the breach it even managed to destroy one of the Shiyu pillars,” Roland said with a frustrated face.

Wise widened his eyes in shock, “Did you say a shiyu pillar was destroyed!?” How could this be? The shiyu pillars, which consist of one to seven pillars, were the last line of defense against the hollows. Without them absorbing and converting the ether in hollows into energy for the city, the hollows are more likely to expand. A thought occurred to Wise in that moment “wait, the shiyu pillars are heavily guarded and contain some of the top of the line technology. How did we not see the ethereal?”

Looking down in disappointment, Roland spoke with a growl “that I don’t know. We of the defense force completely failed not only to eliminate the threat, but to identify it as well. At this moment we’ve dispatched various operatives around the city to find this ethereal. Luckily it showed little signs of destruction as it was traversing through the city. Meaning the public won’t be notified. However, the fact that so little evidence of its presence is also a concern. It seems we are dealing with an intelligent, stealthy opponent.” Seeing their coworker down in the dumps, both Ophelia and Ray tried to cheer him up by placing a hand on his shoulders.

“The defense force is responsible for the safety of New Eridu, but the defense force is an army, not just you. I understand you feel as if you’ve failed when your team does, but honestly I think this ethereal is a little too much for anyone to handle the first time,” Ophelia explained. Ray nodded in agreement.

With a slight smile Ray put in her two cents, “Roland, you’ve always done a good job protecting the people, your jobs not over yet until you eradicate that ethereal.”

Being reminded of his duties and the people he wishes to protect, Roland stands up straight, remembering that he is a soldier.

Ray continued to speak “well then, now that that’s out of the way. Private investigator, thank you for coming in today. Your help is always appreciated.”

Wise in response chose to break down the walls, “Dr. Ray please, just call me Wise.”

With a chuckle, Ray responded “in that case, there’s no need for the Dr is there? Just Ray will do.”

Getting back on track, Wise tried to pry for any information in the ethereal. “I have to ask again, since we know that it’s big and strong enough to destroy a shiyu pillar, were there any sightings of the ethereal?”

The three military personnel exchanged glances before Roland spoke up, “nothing conclusive since the ethereal got past our defenses, but during the time of the attack, all electronics malfunctioned as if an emo was set off, but no circuits were fried so it is unlikely. We do have one sighting of the creature by an engineer that was on break, but it’s too unbelievable given the circumstances.”

“And what were these circumstances? Please Roland, anything, even rumors can be used, "Wise said.

Reluctantly Roland gave in and explained the story behind the sighting of this ethereal. “A senior engineer left the pillar on lunch and as he was making his way towards the transport vehicles. That was when all power was cut and the base was plunged into darkness. Afterwards a loud cracking sound was heard and the pillar fell to the ground. Everyone inside was gravely hurt and a lot of dust was kicked up. The employee who was dazed from the shockwave of the collapsed building swore he saw a 40 foot lump of black mass emerging from the rumble before disappearing. But since so much dust was kicked up, we believe his vision was impaired. Soon after reinforcements arrived and we began evacuating. During that time there were no more sightings.”

Wise pondered for a moment, a 40 meter ethereal? That was unheard of. A creature of that size would need an external factor to support its weight or an excess amount of energy to feed off of. That ethereal would need to stay in a hollow in order to move around, let alone survive. So if it's not hiding within the city, then where was it? “Inside the city,” Wise mumbled. A thought struck him “wait a second!” This outburst turned a few heads, “you said this ethereal escaped a week ago, does that mean that this was the ethereal we were looking for?”

Ray looked back at her charts before answering Wise’s question. “It could be, although unlikely. The ether reading the first time was much smaller, so unless that ethereal got stronger, it’s unlikely. At this moment I’m almost sure that there are two ethereal on the loose.”

“A most concerning turn of events, hopefully this is the last,” said Ophelia. Whilst no one was looking she walked back to her original position and knocked on a nearby desk. A little cute trait Wise noticed.

Having heard the entire discussion, Wise bid the three farewell and made his exit. Soon after arriving home, he filled Belle in on the news to which she showed him an online article about the Shiyu pillar’s fall. The two decided to close up shop early and discuss the future of new Eridu, Wise however hid his nightmare from Belle.

The next day the siblings got up bright and early for once, Belle was in charge of managing the store for the day whilst Wise accompanied Qingyi to Port Elpis. On arrival however, they were met with a grumpy lighthouse keeper who wasn’t particularly fond of public security officers and the head of the fishing association.

Qingyi greeted the two elderly men with a neutral expression, “President Qi and Mr.McDunn it’s good to see you two again.”

President Qi looked between Wise and Qingyi with a friendly expression. “Ah Qingyi, good to see that you can make it again this year and you brought a friend with you this time,” President Qi said.

“Yes, this is Wise. A friend of mine, who will be my partner for the tournament,” Qingyi said. “Before I go teach him how to fish, is there anything we should know about the tournament?”

Mr.Mcdunn stepped forward begrudgingly, “you will need a fishing license from me, just come see me whenever you’re ready and we’ll get you signed up.” As if he couldn’t stand being there for another second, Mr.Mcdunn headed back to the lighthouse.

“Well, I’d best get back to work, you two have fun and if you need anything, just ask some staff. And don’t worry, all fishing gear will be provided by the association,” said President Qi.

“Thank you president,” both Wise and Qingyi said.

“Well manager, let me teach you how to fish. Don’t worry, you’ll be in good hands.” Qingyi said as she walked down the stairs.

“Go easy on me boss,” Wise said with a chuckle.

After a quick lesson on fishing, Wise quickly got the hang of it and started catching a variety of fish. His efforts caught the eye of many fellow fishermans. Wise was so engrossed in watching his bobber that he didn’t notice the beast that approached him from behind. It wasn’t until a large shadow towered over him and the fish swimming away that Wise noticed he was not alone. With a gasp, he was met with a monster with a menacing smile.

“Heya Proxy, wasn’t expecting to see you again so soon. I didn’t know you fished,” said Ben Bigger.

Wise in response hit his signature pose and smile. “Hey Ben, yeah after lunch officer Qingyi stopped by the shop to invite me to join the fishing competition. I’m guessing you as well?”

“That’s right. I don’t mean to brag, but I'm quite the seasoned fisherman. I participated in the fishing associations competition three years in a row. I always fish with Thomas here,” Ben said. Thomas waves with a smile. Why are bear thierens so nice?

Wise’s smile grew into a grin as he and Qingyi exchanged glances. “Well then, looks like we have some competition don’t we Qingyi?”

“You’re right manager. With a bear thieren as our opponent, it looks like we’re at a disadvantage,” Qingyi responded.

Quickly placing his hands up as if protecting himself, Wise quickly warned Qingyi, “whoa Qingyi. Careful with what you say, that could be taken the wrong way.”

With a slight tilt of her head, Qingyi apologized, “Oh I'm so sorry. I didn’t mean to stereotype. I was referring to your build since you’re so much stronger than an average person.”

With a chuckle Ben responded, “it’s alright. No offense taken. We look forward to competing with you two. By the way, if you haven't already, you should sign up for the competition. Deadline is coming up.”

“Oh shoot, Qingyi, we should get going then. Thanks Ben, Bye Thomas. Be sure to make it to the finals for us,” Wise said as he waved and ran up the stairs followed by Qingyi.
After being on the receiving end of Mr.Mcdunn’s disdain, Qingyi and Wise successfully registered for the tournament and resumed training till the competition. With each fish reeled in, Wise got better and better. Qingyi, who was mentoring Wise, brought out a portable grill to cook every catch, to Wise’s delight. Unbeknownst to the two, their world will soon turn upside down.

Chapter Text

Things were looking up for Wise and Qingyi, for one, the two were killing it in the first round. The two powerhouses caught more than twice the average of their competitors, resulting in an easy ticket to the second round. With a high five and good vibes, the duo went to check in on Ben near the bridge fishing spot. As they made their way to the next area, they were passed by many dissatisfied contestants before meeting Ben and Thomas.

Wise greeted the pair with a smile, “hey guys, how’s the fishing going?” To his surprise, the two bears did not greet them with as much energy as he expected.

Thomas spoke up for the two, “we didn’t get a single bite, which is weird. I mean I don’t mean to brag, but Ben is the best fisherman at Belebog Industries. Me, I understand, but Ben would have gotten at least one.”

Ben spoke up as well, explaining the situation. “It’s strange, it wasn’t just us. No one got a single bite in our area, not to mention there was this annoying humming.”

Qingyi, who was silently listening, approached Ben with a look of curiosity. “You mean nobody at all caught a fish? The probability of that happening is very unlikely. And what’s this about a humming sound? As a thieren, I'm sure your hearing is better than a human's, but my hearing is more precise than many.”

“Right, as we were fishing, every now and then I would hear a humming sound coming from off the dock,” Ben said as he pointed at where he heard the sound.

Wise, catching on with the mood, voiced his opinion “qingyi, you don’t suspect foul play do you?”

Qingyi in response walked towards the end of the dock. “Too soon to say, we’ll only really know if I find anything. Just stand by for now.”

As the two reached the end of the dock, Qingyi took a moment to look into the water to locate the spot. Then without warning, she dived into the water, shocking Wise. Moments passed and Wise focused on where Qingyi dove in. A moment later he instinctively looked up into the distant sea, his eyes glowing without his knowledge. For a moment he felt a surge of adrenaline course through him as he noticed a rather strange event at sea. Despite being littered with waves all over the waters, a single spot sported a rather calm ripple. As a wave picked up over the area, he noticed a mass of dark seaweed like appendages being dragged along with the waves. He shook his head in denial, ignoring the feeling he just experienced. As if on queue, Qingyi popped her head out of the water, a small rectangular object raised to the skies.

“Oh my gosh is that-,” Wise said, only to be interrupted by Qingyi.

“Yes, but first help me out of the water,” Qingyi replied.

Quickly grabbing her hand, Wise pulled her out of the water with relative ease to his slight surprise. The event was witnessed not only by Ben and Thomas, but by the event staff as well who assumed a contender fell into the water.

One of the staff ran up to the two and asked, “Ms. are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?”

To which Qingyi cooly replied, “yes i am fine. On another note, I believe this sound amplifier here is why nobody in this area was capable of fishing anything up.” Qingyi extended her hand, allowing for the organizers to inspect the item. At the same time, two contenders angrily walked up, recognizing the item. They spouted foul play and demanded for the cancellation of the event.

In response President Qi arrived and had a discussion with the staff, allowing for everyone to retake the round after a moment had passed. All the while Qingyi stared off towards the lighthouse in thought. Afterwards Ben and Thomas thanked the two as they were given a second chance at making it to the next round.

Soon afterwards Wise grabbed lunch at the fry shack while Qingyi took a work call. Out of boredom Wise noticed lycaon and Rina fishing by the practice area and decided to greet them.

Wise waved at the two as he approached.
“Hey guys, didn’t expect to see you two here.”

Lycaon bowed as Rina used her free hand to pick up her dress. “Master Wise, it’s good to see you up and about, to what do we owe the pleasure?”

“Just wanted to say hi is all, are you guys here for the competition too?” Wise said.

Rina chuckled in response, “no we are here for personal matters, I wish to create a new dish utilizing the freshest fish, but for some reason I haven’t gotten a bite.” Wise noticed that as the bobber shows signs of a nibble, lycaon would stomp his foot, scaring away any fish. Eventually Rina would ask Wise for help and much to Lycaon’s dismay, he accepted.

As Wise winded his rod back and casted his line, he immediately got a catch and reeled in a flounder.

Rina clasped her hands with joy, “as expected of you master, is there anything you can’t do?” Behind her Lycaon looked like he was on death's door. After grabbing the fish and slipping it into a pie while it was still alive, Rina offered the two men a bite of her newest creation.

In response Wise stated that he just ate lunch to Rina’s disappointment and in order to not have any victims, Lycaon offered to work up an appetite in the hollows in order to partake in Rina’s delicacy.

Taking Wise to the side he asked “master proxy, I require your assistance. As you know, Rina does not process a human palette. Which is why I require your assistance in disposing of such hazardous materials in a hollow.”

To his shock, Wise questioned the process, “wait why a hollow, why not into the sea or in the trash like a normal person?”

In response Lycaon gripped Wise’s shoulders, “I'm afraid in order to avoid hurting Rina’s feelings, we must be discreet about it. Not to mention it’s for the sake of New Eridu that something so deadly be placed where no one comes in contact with it.”

Sensing the severity of the situation Wise agreed with haste, “alright, give me a moment to head back to the H.D.D and grab Eous, I’ll meet you in the Port Elpis hollow.”

Lycaon for his part questioned the need to head home seeing as the hollow is right there. “I understand your constitution, however it will be a quick in and out mission.”

Wise thought about lycaon’s reasoning for a moment and although it made sense, he decided not to risk it.

“Apologies Lycaon, but all of my tools are back at home. I won’t be able to guide you out without the H.D.D,” Wise responded.

With a nod of acceptance Lycaon bid his farewell as he met up with Eos in the Port Elpis Hollow. After disposing of Rina’s hazardous material, the two were soon alerted to the sound of a little girl crying. In a rush they backtracked their path and found little soukakou next to an empty dish that previously had the disposed of food.

Putting two and two together, Lycaon fell to his knees, chastising himself for not being more careful in disposing of the food. All the while Wise took charge in escorting the two out of the hollow in order to find Rina in hopes of knowing the ingredients of the dish.

As it turns out Soukakou was crying tears of joy as the flavors were similar to that of her home village cuisine. With relief on everyone’s face, Wise met up with Soukakou in person in order to hand her off to Yanagi.

The small adventure left Wise amused at the shenanigans he and his sister always seem to find themselves in. However it also reminded him of a crucial fact he’s been noticing. No matter how much he ate or what he ate, nothing seemed to satisfy his hunger. As the days passed he felt the pains grow more and more and despite being relatively strong, he noticed that he’s been growing slightly thinner. A secret he kept from Belle.

During the second round of the competition, Wise and Qingyi once again demolished the competition. This time however, materials for repair of the lighthouse were accidentally sent to the hollow for disposal.

After finding out about the information from President Qi and Mr.Mcdunn, Qingyi led Wise to a more private area to talk.

“Another incident, another obstacle. Coincidence? Regardless, it looks like i’m in need of your help once again manager,” says Qingyi

With a nod Wise got to work, whipping his phone out, he was about to give Belle a call to man the H.D.D until he turned around and witnessed Belle reeling in a large sailfish. “What the heck? Belle!” Quickly striding up to Belle, Wise gave her a scolding. “Are you kidding me Belle? You’re supposed to be taking care of the store and if not that then handling our other business!”

With a sheepish chuckle Belle threw the newly caught sailfish into a cooler before responding. “Look bro, I may have gotten a bit impatient, but even I would like to have some fun every now and then. Earlier Ben sent a photo of you going ham during the competition and it looked so fun I had to try it out for myself!”

Wise wanted to be upset, but Belle was pulling the puppy eye card. An unfair defense mechanism exclusive to younger siblings. Having given up on being bad at Belle, Wise moved on. “Look Belle, Qingyi needs our help with recovering supplies from a hollow, give me the keys or head home. Your choice.”

Instantly switching to her serious face, Belle responded. “Nope, you stay here and continue with the tournament, i'll head home.” Quickly taking off, Belle runs to the car leaving Wise and Qingyi alone.

“Well, you should probably get to the rendezvous point,” Wise said. Silently, Qingyi was staring up at Wise. “What? What’s with that look?”

Qingyi looked towards the companion hollow before voicing her thoughts.“I was just wondering, why don’t we just go into the hollow? A proxy of your calibre would have no trouble navigating the hollows in person right?”

Wise stood there for a moment, following her gaze before looking down with sadness. Wise then sat down on the dock, dangling his legs off the edge. Chuckling lightly, Wise responded, “Do you remember why I was in the hospital Qingyi?”

Qingiy placed a finger on her chin, recalling the events that led to Wise’s hospitalization. “You were attacked by ethereals were you not? The bruises we found on your body at the time indicates you were harmed in some way. Although that was the working theory considering you were relatively unscathed, being trapped in a hollow all by yourself and all.”

Shaking his head, Wise explained his situation, “no I don’t think I was. In fact, it’s because my ether aptitude is very low. Same with Belle actually. Which is why we both have to use Eous as a terminal to do our proxy work. If it weren’t for the H.D.D and Eous, we’d have a much harder time getting anything done.”

A moment of silence followed their conversation before Qingyi broke the silence, “I see, I’m sorry for trying to force you into a hollow manager. Well, I should get to the entry point, feel free to keep practicing until I get back.” Standing up, Qingyi heads off, leaving Wise all alone.

Staring into the water and witnessing his reflection he took a moment to relax and reflect on his journey. Thinking about the friends he made along the way, the promises and relationships he’s made with his agents and the importance of his mission. As Wise refocused on his reflection, he was shocked to find a reflection of the Hollow Knight in his place, quickly turning around he saw nothing.

Admonishing himself, Wise buried his face in his hands. “Oh great, I'm losing my mind. I’m actually seeing things now. God what is going on with me?” With a deep sigh, Wise took another look at his reflection. However, rather than seeing a reflection, he was met with a glowing mass of light. For a moment he was reminded of his dream before the light faded into the depths of the sea. A moment later the entire dock shook violently, spooking everyone. Quickly hoards of contestants flocked onto solid ground. Wise being the furthest away followed their lead and ran as quickly as he could, following the group.

Everyone began to murmur, some argued about the stability of the dock. Soon however, President Qi dispatched various staff members to check the underside of the docks, some dove into the water to check underneath.

As the sun began to set President Qi made the announcement, “apologies for the wait everyone, it’s regrettable that we have found no signs of malpractice or disrepair of the docks. Meaning the tremor you all felt cannot be explained. Although we do theorize a sea tremor to be the cause.”

What came after was a mixed response of outrage and defense for the fishing association.

“What are the organizers doing!? If they can’t ensure our safety then I want no part of this competition!” An angry contestant said.

“First cheating and then reckless endangerment? Yeah no thanks I’m out.” An influencer said.

“Come on, the organizers can’t do much if contestants decide to cheat like a loser, but they did remedy the situation by enticing everyone a retry. Think about it, they care a lot about us!” An avid fisher said.

A member of the fishing association also spoke up in defense, “Listen here youngsters, we at the association started this competition so that all of you can learn a valuable skill and enjoy the event. If it doesn’t go well then that would be it for us with all of the money we sunk into it.”

Another passionate member stepped forward in response, “hold up there pal, we needn’t drag the young into our problems, just know that we are doing our best for you all. But we can’t handle everything. So please keep enjoying the event and good luck with all the fishing.”

Witnessing the scene before him President Qi wrapped up the announcement, “alrighty everyone, if you wish to leave you may do so, however for those of you who wish to stay. The third round will commence soon.” As soon as the announcements finished, the crowd dispersed.

Walking up to Wise, Qingyi arrived. “Hey manager, it seems something happened while I was gone. Come, you can fill me in as we walk.” With a nod, Wise obediently followed along retelling Qingyi of the fearsome rocking at the docks.

Soon the two were back at it again, outcompeting the competition. Winning the third round, Qingyi sprung Wise with an important task.

“I want you to represent us in the final round.” She said bluntly.

With wide eyes, Wise could not contain his surprise. “Wait, me? But you’re the veteran between the two of us. Why do you want me to do it?”

Smoothly, Qingyi rebutted, “Because it’s you manager. You’ve already proven yourself a capable fisherman. Just this morning you’ve never fished before yet I’d say you’re already way better than me.”

Blushing at her words, Wise scratched the back of his head. “Your words of encouragement are nice, but still I think-“ cutting off his sentence, Qingyi pounded the final nail in the coffin.

“Also I have to participate in an investigation tonight. I may be on vacation, but duty calls for a civil servant.”

“Ah, then I have no choice. Alright I’ll be sure to do my best then.” Wise said.

“Mhm. Very good, now accompany me for a bit. We have some business at the lighthouse.” Qingyi said.

“Huh?” With curiosity written all over his face, Wise followed. His questions could wait as he feels that he’ll get an answer soon enough. As the two approached the lighthouse, there stood Mr.Mcdunn waiting as if he expected the two.

“Hello, Mr.Mcdunn. I’m sure you can guess why we’re here. And if not then let me give you a refresher. My colleagues and I have uncovered the lamp. If you do not mind, would you like to take a look?” Qingyi said as she carefully unveiled a beautiful and expensive looking lamp.

Wise not understanding the situation quickly interrupted with the questions he’s been holding back. “Qingyi, what’s this about a lamp?”

With wide eyes Qingyi showed a face of realization. “Ah, that’s right. You weren’t there when it happened. Well truth be told, I’ve actually been working on a case with my colleagues for quite some time now. A long time ago there was a thief named Kay who was a part of a really dangerous gang. We at PubSec gave her an out by offering her a deal where she handed over a large amount of the gang's loot in exchange for freedom. In order to do so, the leader Kay would swap out the original valuables with identical replicas. Even today her replicas go down in history with her works going for more than the original gems and artwork.”

“A legendary thief huh? Can’t believe I missed such a big story right under my nose. But what about the lamp and Mr.Mcdunn?” Wise said.

Striking her signature “as a matter of fact” pose, Qingyi explained her deductive reasoning. “Simple really. Mr.McDunn was one of the original members of the group of thieves led by Kay. Meaning if anyone knows the clue left behind on the lamp, it's old man Mcdunn.”

With a scoff and a tired expression Mr.Mcdunn grabbed the vase and observed it carefully. Bringing it up to head level he rested his forehead on the lamp. With a deep sigh, Mr.Mcdunn began to explain the story, “The reason why the vase led you here is because the hint “Let its faint glimmer lead you to the sleeping treasure at the sea crows nest,” and as you can imagine. The sea crow refers to me and the nest, my lighthouse. It was a long time ago, we made a deal with Pub sec to secure the gang's treasures, my role in the plan was to wait here at the lighthouse and signal Kay when the time was right. But an usually strong storm picked up and I never saw her again. After the planned on time, when she didn’t show up. I alerted Pub Sec for help, but they refused because they couldn’t risk alerting the gang. A bunch of useless bastards they are. No offense to you. And ever since then, I've been waiting here.” With sad eyes that refused to shed tears, Mr.Mcdunn handed the lamp back to Qingyi, the fire in his eyes no more.

Qingyi had her eyes closed, expressionless. Wise on the other hand gave him a look of sympathy. “Mr.Mcdunn, I'm so sorry for your loss. It may not be my place. But I hope you finally have the closure you need.” Wise said.

Opening her eyes Qingyi spoke up, “mhm not yet. I’m afraid there’s still more to do. For example, now that we found the clue thanks to the vase. It’s time for this old crow to lead the way to the treasure.”

With shock written on his face, Wise wanted to interject. But at the same time, he knew he had no place to get in the way of Pub Sec’s investigation. Taking a glance at Wise, old man Mcdunn scoffed.

“It’s alright, I've been waiting all this time. This time I can get the closure you spoke of. Let’s see here. We were planning on using a special blue light to signal each other. If we hook up the lamp to the operating system, then we can change the light to blue and it should show us the way.” Mr.Mcdunn said.

With a nod the group headed to the top of the lighthouse, after hooking up the lamp it began to focus on one spot. After a moment, Fairy spoke up from Wise’s phone. “Hint: A small cylinder object is slowly rising from the sea bed.”’

“A small cylinder object?” Wise and Qingyi repeated. After a moment of thinking they both blurted out “a submarine!” in unison.

For a moment life returned to Mr.Mcdunn upon hearing the revelation as he broke out in laughter, “A submarine? That’s the kind of crazy thing Kay would do. Ha.”

“Fairy, where is the submarine now?” Commanded Wise.

“Analyzing. Submarine located off the coast of a nearby coastal reef.” Fairy reported.

“The reef? Well, that’s where the fishing competition finals are gonna be.” Mr.Mcdunn said.

Turning to Wise, Qingyi looked up at him. “Well manager, I’ll have to take my leave now. I have to report my findings to my team. The rest is up to you.” Qingyi said. With a small, but cute smile, Qingyi gave Wise a final piece of advice. “Don’t worry manager, I brought you along to have fun. Whether you win or not, as long as you’ve enjoyed the competition is all that matters.” With a wave, Qingyi took her leave. A moment later Wise revived a text from Qingyi with a bunch of emoticons, using his universal translator (Belle) he pieced together a good luck message.

Taking a deep breath, Wise resolved himself. Marching into the boardwalk, he waited for news of the finals. Deciding to take it easy, Wise sat down by Tater Kings for a quick hearty meal to energize him for the finals. Soon he was joined by Ben and Thomas who ordered just as much as Wise.

“Hey there manager, looks like it’ll be the two of us in the finals huh?” Ben said.

Wise, not wanting to sound arrogant, tried to respond in kind. “Oh? And what makes you think I'll be the one participating? Qingyi is the more experienced of the two of us after all.”

Unexpectedly Ben was more quick witted than Wise realized, “Oh then she must be scared to challenge me, what with her driving away earlier.” Ben chuckled, Thomas joining him. The banter, although lax, was enough to smuggle a grin onto Wise’s face.

“Ok ok you got me. That’s right Ben, I’ll be my team's representative for the finals. Good luck to you as well.” Wise said with an extended hand.

With a confident smile, Ben reached for Wise’s hand and shook it well. “Right back at you, may the best fisherman win.”

In the background Thomas was stuffing his face as he watched the two with shining eyes. “This is like that one manga I read.” He thought to himself.

The two’s moment was interrupted however as Wise winced, a chill running through him. Reacting out of concern, Ben questioned the proxy, “Hey are you alright, what’s wrong?”

To which Wise responded, “it's nothing serious. Just felt a chill is all.”

Not feeling convinced, but not wanting to pry either, Ben nodded in agreement. “Look proxy, we may not have known each other long, but I do consider you a friend. One of the few I can open up to as well. If anything is bothering you, you can count on me. Got it?” Ben said with a puff.

“Bro?” Wise said with an exaggerated teary eye.

“What?” said Ben.

“Oh sorry, I just got possessed by Anton for a moment.” Wise aid.

“Oh,” was all Ben could say as he did not want to try and figure out the meaning behind Wise’s words. “By the way proxy, not to sound rude, but did you always eat so much? I’ve noticed you eating your catches as well. Not to shame you or anything. I get it really. Sometimes I come out here to catch what I eat as well whenever I have a day off.”

Blushing slightly, Wise looked to the side. “To be honest with you Ben, I’ve been eating a lot more since the coma. Doctor said it was a trauma response, but I'm not too sure.”

Ben adopting his poppa bear-like tendencies eased up on the questioning, “Apologies manager, I shouldn’t ask things that remind you of the incident. I’m sure you’re sick of everyone worrying about you at this point.”

With a light chuckle Wise gave a timid response “It's the thought that counts. I’m happy that so many people care for me.” The three continued to have a fun conversation as they munched on some fries until someone by the water yelled out, notifying everyone within ear range. People gathered towards him and looked in the direction he was pointing. Those who were drawn by the crowd leaned towards the railing and followed their gaze. There in the distance everyone witnessed a bunch of blue lights in the water, all converging around a small island.

Quickly Thomas stood up excited, “Ben! Isn’t this what you came here for? The bioluminescent fish. They really are here!”

Ben, who mirrored his colleagues movements couldn’t contain his excitement, “Looks like the rumors were true after all.” Turning towards Wise Ben gave one last competitive banter before throwing away his trash. “Better focus up manager, otherwise I’m gonna catch all the fish tonight.”

Standing up and throwing away his food, Wise turned back around with fire in his eyes. “The only thing you’ll be catching are my leftovers Ben. Don’t worry though, I’ll leave the small one’s for you so you don’t go home empty handed.”

Soon a booming voice echoed through the docks courtesy of a staff member with a megaphone. “Attention everyone! We have some great news for you guys. President Qi, in celebration of the confirmation of the bioluminescent fish, has spoken with as many fishermen docked here at Port Elpis. In order to allow everyone to make the trip to the coral reef. There everyone has a chance to see this super rare species of fish up close and personal!”

A cry of cheers rang out in response, many were excited for the once in a lifetime opportunity. Others were just there for the ride and were happy to be included. Afterwards President QI and Mr.Mcdunn walked towards the front of the crowd.

“Hey! Quiet down you lot!” Yelled Mr.Mcdunn. Soon the crowd quieted down, focusing on the old men.

President Qi rested a hand on his friend's shoulder before addressing the crowd. “Now, now old friend, todays a happy occasion. Ahem, now listen up everyone. The tournament’s structure was going to originally only allow for a representative from each team to be driven out towards the reef. But as we’ve decided, we wanted to give you all a chance of witnessing this miracle. However, we do have everyone’s well being to consider. So we ask all of you who wish to participate to sign these non-liability forms.” The announcement soon caused the crowd to murmur. Some found it odd, others protested needing to sign anything.

Before anyone could protest Mr.Mcdunn spoke up, “listen, i’ve been the lighthouse keeper here for many years. By the looks of the clouds coming in. It will soon start raining, shouldn’t be anything too bad, but you should never underestimate the seas.”

Nodding in agreement, President Qi continued “that’s right, in the slight chance it gets dangerous. As much as it shames me to say this, we at the association cannot ensure everyone’s safety nor compensate for damages. So be warned, it should be a quick trip and back from the reef.”

Once the announcement was finished, the gathered crowd argued amongst themselves.

“I don’t know bro this seems kind of sketchy, what kind of fishing association makes you sign a liability form?” Said one contestant to his partner.

“Think about it man, the association can’t handle any lawsuits since they’re small. This is for them, but it can’t be that bad. Especially with all the boats coming with us, we can just dip if it gets bad!” Argued his partner.

“Well it is a once in a lifetime event, why not make the most of it!” Says an enthusiastic fisherman.

“Uh uh no way am I going out there! If you want to go then you can go yourself!” Says a shaking cat theiren.

Looking at the mixed reactions did nothing for Wise as he already had his eyes in first place.

Walking up to the staff in charge of registration he was the first to sign and board the boat. Soon after Ben and Thomas followed. This caused more and more people to make up their minds and board the boats. After a while the staff made an announcement for the last call. “5 minutes for departure! We will prioritize the final contestants fishing match, afterwards. Anyone and everyone is allowed to observe the fish up close. Once again last call for anyone who wants to head to the reef!”

Staring off into the distant island, Wise gazed at the various lights swimming near the shallows. A drop of rain hitting his cheek. Wiping it off he looked towards the cloudy sky that began to drizzle. All the while a sinking feeling loomed over him.

Chapter Text

As the sun began to set in the horizon, a large number of boats carrying fisherman and tourists began to sail towards the small reef island said to harbor the illusive bioluminescent fish. With the contestants on one boat, they led the group towards the back of the island and briefly made a stop a little off shore. One of the fishing association staff members then proceeded to frantically wave both her arms in the air in order to signal to all the other boats to stop. One by one, each boat stopped before her, waiting for any news. After everyone was accounted for, the association staff brought out her megaphone in order to direct the group of people.

With a tap on her megaphone, the staff began to speak. “Attention everyone, we are now approaching the coral reef island. Remember that the reason we are all here is because we are going to observe the illusive bioluminescent fish. The reason why we even get the chance to see them is because they rarely come up to the surface to spawn. Meaning we do not want to mess up their breeding cycle, understand? This is the only chance they are going to get, so let’s all be respectful. No throwing away any trash, no disturbing or picking up any of the fish and please don't skip any rocks. I'm begging you here.” After the worker was finished, unexpectedly a few people gave her a round of applause for making it clear why protecting wildlife was so important. Soon, many more people joined in causing her to blush and step down. President Qi soon gave the nod to the captain to slowly dock the boat and the staff members were the first to get off.

Working with speed and precision, they quickly put together an impromptu contest area, fit with an area where the contestants would fish and an area for observers. With all of the work done and the group of guests making their way on the island, it was apparent that chaos would soon ensue. Taking over as the announcer for the competition, President Qi stepped forward addressing the crowd. With closed eyes he lowered his head. And with one rapid motion, he banged chest with a fist and showed energy that the elderly in New Eridu somehow possessed. “Ladies and gentlemen thank you all for coming out here today, what started off as a dream to spread the art of fishing to the younger generations turned into a once in a lifetime event. I can’t thank you all enough for all of the support. Not only was the turnout great, but I’m glad to see so many people have so much fun today. However, it’s not over yet as we still have yet to declare a winner. So without further adoo, will the representatives of each team step forward?”

“Huh, his sudden spunk reminds me of something Qingyi once told me. Something about a group of elderly beating up thugs with her.” Wise thought to himself.

“Let’s give a warm welcome to the desert rider from the outer ring, King!.” Said President Qi.

The first to step up was a rough looking fellow that leaked aura. “King’s the name and winning is my game.” The younger audience cringed slightly at King’s introduction.

“Next up is the busy body from the office who inspires cubicle workers everywhere Ana!”

The second contestant was a cute little bluette wearing a clean suit. “I took the day off so if I don’t win…”

Stomping on the ground and raising his arms in a roaring motion, President Qi introduced the next contestant. “And here comes a familiar face amongst the fishing association! A long time fisherman with impeccable skills. But don’t let his face fool you, he resembles a teddy bear more than he does an actual bear. Introducing Ben Bigger!” Many of the audience members weren’t too convinced upon seeing Ben, but cheered out of respect.

Walking up to the fishing sight Ben turned and did his best smile towards the audience which unsettled them more. “Let’s have a nice clean competition.” Thomas cheered with so much vigor, he ripped his shirt apart before promptly pulling out another one to cover himself up.

“Now the second to last contestant is a newcomer who until this morning had no fishing experience. It’s the rising star of Port Elpis, the partner of my dear friend. It’s contestant Wise!” President Qi roared.

With a timid smile, Wise waved at the audience. “Feel free to drop by Random Play on Sixth Street. We’ll give you a discount on our membership.” For a moment Wise thought he could see a gigantic image of his sister giving him a thumbs up.

With a deep breath President Qi calmed down and introduced the last contestant. “And finally the last contest. Please step forward.” After a moment of silence, nobody stepped forward. When all of a sudden, President Qi started towards the fishing area and turned with a smirk. “The last finalist was none other than me. Mr. Qi the lord of the open seas. The president of the New Eridu Fishing Association.” Many of the audience members stayed quiet from the reveal as they’ve all witnessed President Qi in action during the earlier rounds. All except one person.

“Oh my gosh, it was the president all along?” Yelled a wide mouthed Thomas. Ben was visibly embarrassed by the reaction.

Continuing with the announcement President Qi explained the rules once again. “For the final rounds, the previous round rules will still apply. However, if any of the finalists would catch a bioluminescent fish, they will be rewarded with 3 points. So good luck to the contestants and let’s get fishing.” An eruption of cheers rang out from the audience as everyone was super excited for the climatic final round. With the announcements taken care of, each finalist prepped their gear and headed towards the water. Picking their spot, they waited for the announcement to start.

Afterwards a referee came forward. “Contestants. Are you ready?” Said the referee. Looking at each contestant, they responded with a nod. “Then let the final round begin!” Like a switch had been activated, each contestant launched their lines into the sea. Ben, having launched his line the farthest with his mighty strength, aimed for the glowing fish. The rest of the contestants only reached half his length. King expertly played with his line, slowly reeling and jiggling his bobber in to simulate prey. Ana played the slow reel game before casting her line again and repeated the action. President Qi, like a master never once touched his reel, he waited like a statue for any movement.

Then there was Wise who mirrored President Qi as he did not touch is reel. However, he was not as calm as the president. “What’s going on? Usually I would get a bite within a few seconds, this is taking too long! Darn it could it be that there’s another speaker around here?” Soon many of the spectators would form their own little group made up of friends or family and take their positions all over the island, observing the action up close and attempting to spot any glowing fish.

Many cheered as best they can, but as the minutes passed and no fish were reeled in the cheers lessen. Some decided to try to entertain themselves by recording or streaming their actions in order to garner attention on the interknot. One group of school kids leaned over the water, trying to lure in the fish by splashing the water. “Hey guys. Don’t you think this is kind of a ripoff? I mean we’ve been here for a few minutes, but there’s been no signs of any fish,” said an impatient boy.

An spectacled girl spoke up in response, “hey don’t do that! You’ll scare away the fish and we’ll be yelled at.”

The final member of the school trio spoke up as well. “She’s right, besides you have to be patient. Fishing is about patients and timing, you can’t just expect to get a hook right off the bat.”

The first boy just laughed off his friend's warnings. “Haha, then you’ve never seen me in action! I’ll catch a bucket full within twenty minutes. Besides, what are the staff going to do? Send me home? We’re already all the way out here. There’s nothing they can do besides yell at us. In which case we can just run away.”

The second boy responded seriously, “we’re on a small island. There is nowhere to run.”

Another group of people started talking and walking loudly around the fishermen, soon one couple not watching where they were going bumped into King, knocking him into the water.

With a gasp from the couple, King crawled out of the water angrily. “Hey what do you think you’re doing! Are you trying to sabotage me?” King yelled. Profusely apologizing, the couple bowled over and over again.

“Oh my gosh I'm so sorry sir, it was an accident I swear!” The girl said.

“Really, I shouldn’t have convinced my girl to go on a walk with me so close to you guys, please be merciful.” Said the boyfriend.

With a popped vein, King was having none of it. Choosing rather to let his words do the assaulting, “do you think apologies is going to cut it? You’re lucky I didn’t have my phone or wallet on me. If you two had any common sense, you’d have known that a gallery is only good for looking at!”

This scene caught the attention of mostly everyone, including the referee. Jogging over to the three the staff member defused the situation. “Mr. King sir, please calm down. We at the association will cover your dry cleaning so please resume with the competition.” With a huff, King nodded before losing his angry face. Turning around and addressing the couple the staff member then decided to scold them. “As for you two, you’ve nearly jeopardize the fairness of this competition. For that, you two can join those school kids on the boat. Once the competition is over, you may return to the island to observe the fish.” With a guilty nod, the couple were escorted onto the makeshift prison ship, both steaming with embarrassment.

Seeing how severe the punishments were however, did not deter the rest of the audience as many grew impatient from the lack of action. Soon the sun began to set and the dark clouds now encompassed the sky. The contestants had still no luck with a bite. As time passed on, many voiced their concerns.

“What’s going on, its been thirty minutes since the round started and none of us had so much as a nibble.” Said Ana who huffed in irritation.

“Do you think it’s another sonic speaker scenario?” Said Ben who was not thrilled at the idea of having another one of his matches ruined.

“Can’t be, we have no reports of any ships sailing near this site in weeks.” Said President Qi.

King who was irritated before pointed out the most obvious yet questionable scenario. “Why is it that none of us are able to catch the glowing fish? I mean we can see them all over there,” King said as he pointed off into the distance. “There must be hundreds of them.” Many agreed, it was odd that no one had a bite considering the sheer number of fish evidently swimming around in the distance.

The questioning was soon halted as a great amount of force tugged on Wise’s line, causing him to grunt in surprise. “Guh, wait a minute I got one!” Soon all eyes were on him as he fought as hard as he could. The previously bored crowd once again erupted in cheers for Wise, his fellow finalists having nothing to do gave him a sportsmanlike smile as they too gave him their full attention. With a tug of his pole, Wise bent his rod into a U-shape before unexpectedly being dragged towards the sea at an alarming pace. Quickly thinking, Wise dug his heels into the soft ground to no avail. As he continued to get dragged towards the sea, he fought hard, taking back some space. The fight between catch and catcher was just the excitement the crowd wished to see as they began to take a few steps closer in order to watch with the staff forming a human fence to stop them from interfering. Refusing to let go, Wise allowed the fish some breathing room by switching his reel up in order to allow it to think it's free before reeling it back in while it was tired.

However, Wise miscalculated that his reel would jam causing him to lose the momentum he had. And in one moment his line tugged again, launching him into the air. With slowly widened eyes, Wise witnessed the ground he was standing on to slowly get further and further away. The happy cheers on everyone’s excited faces slowly turned into horrified gasps. Before Wise could get too far off the ground however, is leg was quickly grabbed by Ben.

Clenching his teeth, Ben pulled back his arm. “Manager, don’t let go of the rod!” Quickly regaining his composure, Wise held onto the rod for dear life and soon was pulled safely into Ben’s arms. This quick save morphed the crowd into a shrieking mess.

“Holy heck that was so cool!” A overexcitedly kid said whilst jumping up and down.

“You got that right little bro.” An older dude responded, wiping a sweat off his forehead.

Clutching her chest a girl exhaled, “that was too close for comfort. What a rollercoaster of emotions.”

President Qi who was always on top of fishing related matters, reeled Wise back into action. “The fish boy, you’ve still got it!” He yelled.

With quick realization, Ben gently placed Wise down to resume his battle. Just like before, Wise quickly started to get dragged towards the water. “Ugh, not good.” Wise thought to himself. When suddenly he got an idea. Turning his head whilst maintaining his form, Wise called out for help. “Ben, I need you!” With a smug smile and a nod, Ben let go of his rod and ran behind Wise. Quickly grabbing on parts of his rod and waist, Ben began to pull.

“Come on manager, 1, 2, 3, pull!” Ben roared.

The sudden action confused the other contestants and audience. Many of whom questioned the legality of the action. Before anyone could voice their complaint, President Qi put down his rod and grabbed Wise’s other arm. “Fishing is about the fight, but that doesn’t mean we can’t assist a fisherman when he needs it!” Taking President Qi’s words as a confirmation, everyone settled on the idea and once again cheered for the sportsmanlike behavior. With the power of two sticks and a giant bear, the three began to take back land and win the fight. The struggle spanned 20 minutes with the three dragging their feet and being pulled towards the water.

“Gosh, these lines are strong.” Wise thought. As time went on, Wise could feel himself tiring. His strength fading. However, his resolve stood firm. With a heart beating a mile a minute, his eyes began to emit an eerie green glow. With a large stomp, he dragged his feet with all his might and when the slightest sliver of silver broke the surface of the water, he began to yell, hoping to draw out the last of his strength “I can see it everyone, pull, pull!” And with one final spurt, the three threw the rod over Wise’s shoulder and out the water was a small submarine. As it opened, the compartment lit up, revealing countless jewels and works of art. The crowd, although wondering why a sub appeared, erupted in cheers over the first catch of the finals.

With the bright treasure reflecting in Wise’s eyes, he couldn’t help but stare in awe. “This is?” Wise mumbled.

Breathing heavily from the earlier workout, President Qi interrupted. “This must be the treasure that Pub Sec was after. Hey, will the strongest of you take this sub and put it on one of the boats? This is evidence for a case Pub Sec is working on,” President Qi ordered. With a salute, a couple of his biggest staff members began to lug the sub through the crowd and onto the boat. “And make sure nobody takes anything, so guard it with your life.” Afterwards, President Qi collapsed to the ground, shocking everyone.

Rushing to his side, Wise checked on his condition. “Hey, President Qi, are you alright? What happened?” Wise said in concern.

What Wise didn’t expect however, was a hearty laugh to escape the old fishermen’s mouth. “I haven’t had a fight like that in years. These old bones of mine are finally catching up to me it seems. Safe to say, I'm no longer fit to participate in the competition.” A muffled chuckle escaped his mouth as he showed the biggest smile a person can make.

Signing in relief, everyone calmed down. However, a question was on everyone’s mind. Who won the competition, does the submarine count? By the time the submarine surfaced, it had already grown dark. Too dark.

A young boy asked a question that caught everyone’s attention, “hey what happened to all of the glowing fish?” Upon hearing the boy, everyone shifted their gaze out to the waters. Sure enough, the previous mass of glowing lights were nowhere to be seen.

“Oh no, did we miss it? Did they all swim away?” Grandpa Gu said with a slump of his shoulders.

“That’s not possible, we weren’t even here for that long. We were so careful not to disturb them.” President Qi said as he was helped up by Ben. First came the confusion, then the outcry.

“Oh what a waste of time!” An angry man said.

“Right? We came because we were promised a once in a lifetime event, but it was all for nothing.” An miffed woman said.

“The tournament wasn’t even fun, fishing is overrated.” A high schooler complained.

One by one, more and more complaints started to pile up like a dam that overflowed. Looking around, President Qi felt heartbroken that his competition was for not. Until one person pointed out a light in the sea.

“Wait, look! What’s that!” A girl said as she pointed out at the sea. Everyone turned to the light staring at it in awe.

“They’re back!” A school girl said.

Staring at the glowing light, Wise had the same sinking feeling from before. “I don’t think that’s the fish.” Wise mumbled, his eyes squinting and glowing more than ever.

Ben, who was standing next to him, questioned Wise as he continued to stare at the light, not noticing Wise’s eyes.

“That glow, it’s purple instead of blue.” Wise pointed out. “It reminds me of,” Wise said before he paused. “Ether.”

Upon hearing the possible source of the glow, Ben’s fur started to stand on end and his eyes furrowed. Not a moment later, an explosion occurred on the spot. The shockwave visible to all as it carried the purple glow with it. Without a moment to lose, Ben quickly roared out orders, “everyone on the ground now-,” Ben managed to say before he was cut off and knocked to the ground. In the last moment, he managed to drop himself onto President Qi and Wise, shielding them from the blast. From underneath Ben, Wise saw many people curled up in a ball. For those who couldn’t react in time, they were thrown back, some hit the wall, others onto the ground. Very faintly, Wise could hear the screams as the explosion dominated his senses.

Once the worst of it was over and the dust began to settle, one by one, everyone began to stand back up.

“Wha-what happened?” Ben said as he looked at the injured civilians.

Taking a look at the spot that previously had the light and then up towards the sky, Wise dawned a serious expression as he felt a familiar feeling on his skin. “That explosion, it caused a companion hollow to form around us.” Wise said as he looked at his arms. “No signs of ether corruption just yet.” Wise thought.

“But why? Why did a hollow form around us?” Ben asked calmly.

Taking a moment to think, Wise began to rest his hand on his chin. Going over the possibilities, Wise came up with the most likely hypothesis. “In order for a hollow to form, a large amount of unstable ether must be present in the atmosphere. From what we saw earlier, it could be that an unknown vein of ether began to leak out of the seabed in Port Elpis or there was an illegal dumping of ether material in the area. Regardless, the why is not so important right now as we should begin to evacuate.”

“As expected of you Manager, always calm and calculating. That being said, can you even get us out of here without any gear?” Ben said. From what he knew about Hollows, they warp the world around them in order to create a maze, but with the hollow appearing in the middle of the ocean, would rifts take them to the seabed if they sailed out of here?

Thinking about the situation carefully, Wise answered with confidence. “Since there’s no structures to warp, it should be as easy as sailing right out of here. But without any hollow observation data, it’ll take me some time to find the right path to sail.” Wise said.

“Hm.” President Qi hummed, alerting both Wise and Ben. “I see, you’re a proxy then.” president Qi stated as he looked at Wise.

In a panic both Ben and Wise tried to defuse the situation. “No no no, I'm just a private investigator working with the Defense Force.” Wise blurted out.

“That’s right, he actually used to work for H.A.N.D before going private.” Ben lied as he tried to give a confident smile.

Waving his hand and shaking his head, President Qi was having none of it. “I don’t care about the circumstances. Qingyi trusts you, so will I. What’s important is to get everyone off of this island.” Turning towards the crowd and the Fishing Association Staff, President Qi began to restore order. “Alright everyone listen up! We need to begin evacuating. Everyone single file onto the boats, no pushing!”

The people began to look at each other and mumble amongst their groups, not moving. President Qi stared at them. Wondering why no one was listening until King came forward.

“You! This is all your fault!” He yelled. President Qi recoiling from the unexpected accusation.

Standing his ground, President Qi defended himself. “What do you mean my fault? How is any of this my fault?” President Qi responded.

Angrily stepping forward and storming towards the old man, King raised his fist into the air before a large furry arm and a large shadow intercepted him. There stood Ben Bigger with a not so gentle expression dawning his face. “This situation is no one’s fault Mr. King, we should all stay calm now.” Ben said.

Twitching as if he had a heart attack, King grew even angrier. “Calm? Calm! Can’t you see this is all his fault?” King yelled as he pointed at President Qi. Turning around and facing the crowd, King began to preach his thoughts. “Think about it, we are all gathered here today because of his stupid fishing contest. Was it a coincidence that a super rare species of fish was suddenly spotted near Port Elpis and days later a fishing contest took place?” With curled fingers, king quoted the next part to emphasize his points to the crowd. “And let’s not forget that the “Fishing Association” just so happened to get all these boats together on short notice to gather all of us here!” Murmurs spread throughout the civilians, many nodding their heads at King’s words. Some grew angry expressions and began to voice their dissatisfaction.

“That’s right, he did start all of this!” An angry office worker said.

“So, it was an elaborate plan to kill all of us all along.” A streamer said as she held out her phone.

With the crowd changing their tune to King’s side, he decided to hammer the nail in the coffin. “And let’s not forget, the sketchy liability forms he made us all sign.” Turning back towards President Qi, he laughed in triump, “You thought you could get away with it did you? You’re nothing more than a murderer caught red handed.”

President Qi looked all around, his eyes begging for support. It didn’t help that he was at a loss for words as he couldn’t even defend himself. With so many people protesting, complaining and chanting the same words over again, President Qi closed his eyes and took the abuse. What President Qi didn’t expect however was that his fellow fishermen and half his staff crossed over to his side and stood beside him, their presence giving Qi some hope.

“President Qi is not like that, he’s a good man.” One fisherman said, followed by his association members.

One of the staff spoke up, “I may not have been on the team for long, but I've seen President Qi pull some money from his retirement funds to support the contest when unexpected expenses came up. No man capable of that is a bad one.” Her statement was followed by a bunch of sounds of affirmation.

One of the boat’s captains then spoke up. “My name is Captain Dennis. You may not believe us, but the fishing association really did ask us last minute to sail you all out here. I’ve known President Qi for a long time and I swear on my boat, he would never wish to harm you.” With so many people supporting him, President Qi wiped the tears in from his eyes and stood back up. However, it was not enough to deter the crowdl. Over and over again President Qi held onto the memory of their happy faces and laughter from earlier that day as they chanted “lock him up! Lock him up!”

Ben and Wise who carefully listened to what King and everyone else had to say, could no longer hold back their anger. But before any of them could get a word in, a beastly roar erupted from behind them. Instinctively, one person having recognized the situation cried out “an ethereal!” With everyone scattering towards Wise and Ben. Ben, not having his weapon, raised his fists, ready to go old school. What was thought to be an Ethereal was actually Ben’s coworker Thomas.

“I am not an Ethereal,” Thomas grunted. “People, look at yourselves. You’re letting your fears get the best of you and turning on each other. Listen, I can’t say much for everyone here. But we are all good people.” Thomas started. “When me and my family came to New Eridu, we had nothing, no one to rely on but each other. Heck most people who saw me were afraid at first and I couldn’t get a job no matter how much I tried. Do you know why?” Thomas paused as he looked towards the people, most waited, some shook their heads. Other’s just looked at him in fear. Pointing at those who stared at him with fear, shifting the attention of the people, Thomas continued. “It’s because of that. Because I am a big scary bear. But I'm not a big scary bear. I love my wife, my kids and my friends. And much more than that, I love New Eridu, its people. Eventually I found a second home, a home called Belobog Industries where I work with others just like me. To me, Belobog Industries represents New Eridu, it was a place that accepted anyone, even us bear thirens. For the first time, we met humans who weren’t scared of us, but actually saw us as people. And from that I learned that despite all of our differences, our mistakes. New Eridu is a place where people can get together and work together. So instead of tearing at eachother’s throats. Let’s work together to get out of here. What do you say?”

A moment of silence took over the crowd before one by one, the people voiced their agreement.

“You’re right Mr.Bear sir. We shouldn’t let our fears get to us.” An old man said.

“My name is Thomas and don’t mention it. Everyone needs to be checked every once in a while.”

“W Thomas,” The streamer girl mumbled.

Ben who listened in on his partner’s speech couldn’t have looked any prouder. Walking up to Thomas, Ben placed a hand on his shoulder and congratulated him. “You have a mighty fine way with words Thomas. Couldn’t have done as good a job as you.”

Feeling shy Thomas brushed off his Boss’s compliment. “I said what anyone would have said. It’s no big deal.” Thomas chuckled.

Ben patting Thomas on the back dismissed his dismissal. “Nonsense, what you did was speak from the heart. Maybe I should talk to the boss about making you do public speeches instead of heavy lifting.” What came after was a polite, but adamant refusal from Thomas as he preferred heavy lifting.

Turning towards President Qi, the people began to apologize profusely. “We’re so sorry! Forgive us.” The people said. They began to swarm President Qi with various excuses and apologies.

So much so that it overwhelmed the old timer. “Hold on, apologies are forgiven, but we’re still in a hollow. Let’s focus on evacuation! It’s already dark out and trust me, scary stuff happens out at sea during the night.” President Qi said as he noticed it began to rain more heavily than a drizzle.

“R-right!” The people voiced. Soon the staff began to form a human fence towards the boat, with the captains boarding first and the people second. Following the line of people, Wise began to walk before a feeling tugged at him to turn around and look towards the water. At first there was nothing, then a bright blue glow appeared in the water. A couple of seconds later, more and more lights popped out of nowhere. His sudden stop and gaze garnered the curiosity of those behind him as they too turned their heads.

“Whoa the glowing fish are back! And they’re closer than ever!” An excited high schooler said. His announcement attracting the attention of everyone in line. Many of the adults remained still, their reasoning causing them to continue evacuating, but the younger children not accompanied by any adults opted to observe the lights up close.

One of the staff members who failed to grab the children, issued them a warning. “I’m sorry kids. There’s no time for sightseeing, we have to get out of the hollow as fast as possible”

The kids however were not listening, a cocky teenager responded with a smug smile. “Oh please, we’re in a hollow that doesn’t have any ethereals, what can go wrong?” The teen then watched as the adult’s jaws began to drop as they slowly began to look up. Sensing the shift in atmosphere, the teen turned back around and proceeded to slowly shift his gaze up.

From Wise’s eyes, he could have sworn he’s never seen anything like it before, a phenomenon that should have been impossible. But he has, in his dreams. In the reflection of his eyes, stars born from the sea can be seen flying off into the sky. Witnessed by all.

Chapter Text

The sea is an unforgiving mistress. A force of nature that mankind cannot conquer, no matter how much effort they put in realizing this goal, it remains an impossible task. From the tales of giant sea monsters, to an underwater city overflowing with gold, to many unexplained phenomena relating to the stars themselves, it is the birthplace of many legends. In ancient texts found in the archives of the old civilization there lies a term that seems to have significance in many parts of the old world that entails the very confines of space itself being enveloped in primordial waters, a cosmic ocean. The birthplace of the celestial bodies themselves and creatures belonging to the stars. To all those present at Port Elpis that day, the experience was like a nightmare they couldn’t awaken from as they stared face to face with an enigma so powerful, the very destruction of New Eridu was all but assured.

Still mesmerized by the spectacle before him, Ben questioned Wise in hopes for an answer. Hoping that the Proxy’s years of experience that trumps his own had witnessed a similar sight in the past. “Proxy, what am I looking at right now?” Ben asked, forgetting to cover up for the man’s secret identity amongst the crowd of people.

With furrowed brows and rain dripping down his face, Wise thought for a moment, his mind trying to process the information logically. “Ben, this isn't exactly my area of expertise, but there were legends from the old civilization of balls of light rising from the sea. Some believed them to be extraterrestrials, others believed them to be gods. Whatever it is, it's right in front of us now” Wise said with a gulp.

As the crowd of people continued to admire the scene before them, the winds suddenly picked up causing everyone to mildly flinch from the change. The weather would continue to worsen as not a moment later a strike of lightning ran across the sky, illuminating the dark seas for a second. That moment however was all it took to slowly morph the faces of everyone present into a face of horror. For that moment seemed to slow down just enough to allow everyone to witness a shadow stalking each light. As more thunder struck across the sky, the people were given more chances to witness the truth behind each ball of light as they began to make out the slightest silhouette of a pillar-like structure. Their confusion continued as the pillars began to morph and bend in ways no solid structure should. As if coming alive, the lights and pillars danced as they gathered around one area and with one motion, one of the pillars winded itself back before becoming a blur and striking the island with a thunderous crash, its large mass now resting on the small island. This event allowed for all to get a good look of the truth behind the bizarre sight, the once unidentified object which defied all logic was revealed to be an enormous tentacle, the stars being bioluminescent fleshy pods that decorated the limb.

Gazing at the large tentacle, Wise then began to connect the dots as to what he was witnessing. Slowly, he turned his head from the tentacle before him and along its length, trying to witness the beast it was connected too. Being reminded of tales of a legendary octopus that once terrorized ships at seas, a single sentence escaping his lips, “it’s a monster, one that resembled a Kraken, a legendary monster from the old capital.” Slowly the monster began to emerge from the sea, the glow from the stars brightened, now revealing its body as the glow spread along its flesh, a purple hue highlighting the creature's once black body. The creature’s flesh truly resembled that of the vast expanses of space. Its glow allowed for all to see the gargantuan size of the beast still hidden amongst the dark waters. Its large bulbous head breaks the water's surface, causing waves to intensify with every move. Its green visor-like eyes soon broke the surface of the water with a menacing green glow and its tentacles like saplings began to sprout all around the Kraken like a forest of flesh.

Gritting his teeth at the monster before him, Ben quickly regained control of himself and analyzed the creature before him. The shape? Just like an octopus. The characteristics? Armored from tip to toe with various scar-like areas exposing its cosmic-like flesh. No feature went unobserved, its characteristics reminding Ben of enemies he’s fought before. “No, it’s an Ethereal,” Ben growled out. After taking a moment to observe the creature, Wise all but agreed with Ben. A thought crossed his mind.

In a hot flash, a memory from the day before at Scott Outpost resurfaced with Roland briefing him of an absurd scenario: “A senior engineer claimed to have spotted a forty meter black mass after the destruction of one of the Shiyu Pillars.”

“Could this be?” Wise thought. “This has to be the same ethereal, all the descriptions match. It’s large, powerful and it was found within the search area. But how exactly did it get here? And how did it make a Hollow appear?” All of a sudden a scream pierced his ears interrupting his thoughts.

Quickly observing his surroundings, the source of the scream originated from the mouths of the people as they turned tail and rushed towards the boats. In a panic the people pushed aside anyone in their way, trampling those who were too slow to board on time, one man was even flipped off the boat’s railing and into the chilling waters. Another was trampled. As the crowd flocked towards the closest escape route, various nasty words were heard.

“Get out of the way! My life is more important than yours!” King said as he knocked over various people. Shame that a fisherman who climbed his way to the top would end up acting so entitled.

“Move old man! Your life is as good as over, give us young guys a chance!” A man in his 30s said.

The disappointment in Ben’s eyes could not be expressed in words with what he witnessed. But, Ben couldn’t blame them as it was their instinct to preserve their own life. In response to the chaos however, Ben rushed over to help those who were trampled. “Hey, it’s going to be ok. You’re going to be alright.” Ben said over and over again as he picked up a bruised and teary eyed old man. Checking on the condition of the man, Ben sat him beside a rock wall before checking on the next person who caught his eye. But before Ben could check them over, Thomas was already on the assist.

“More hands means more help right boss?” Thomas said with a smile. Shocked, but proud. Ben’s mouth went from agape to a smile. With a nod, Ben continued to check on more people, gathering them all in one spot.

Looking back and forth between the pile of people and the boats, Ben made the quick decision to be a leader and restore order to this chaos. Leaning down beside the people Ben tried to console them. “Don’t you folks worry, I promise I'll get you guys home safe.” Turning his head Ben laid his eyes on his two friends. “Thomas, Wise help me carry the people onto the boat.”

“But what about the mob?” Wise asked. He highly doubted that the civilians would listen to reason in the face of a giant ethereal that dwarfed Nineveh.

With furrowed brows, Ben could only mutter. “Leave them to me.” Wordlessly Wise and Thomas looked at each other and nodded their heads. They then began to help Ben transport the injured. The bear thirens carrying a person on each arm one hanging onto their necks for dear life. Wise could only gather the crying children, reassuring them that everything will be ok.

As the three made their way towards the mob of people still fighting for a chance to escape, Ben let out a thunderous roar, silencing the crowd and gaining their attention. Growling and baring his fangs, Ben restored order with his beastly aura. “The injured, the elderly and the kids on board first. Anyone who disagrees has to deal with me, got it?” Ben said in a way that left no arguments. Quickly, everyone nodded their heads and parted ways to allow the weak onto the boats. One by one the boats began to leave, speeding away from the hulking Ethereal before it can attack.

“Alright these should be the last of the injured.” Wise said as he placed the last child onto the boat who was clutching onto his jacket’s sleeve

With a bright smile, the girl, now feeling safe, thanked the three for helping her. As the girl tugged and let go of Wise’s sleeve, Wise rolled it back only to gasp at the sight before him. He once again witnessed the crystal like formation on his arm, signaling the advancement of his ether corruption. As Wise closely observed his arm, he failed to notice the looks he was receiving from the people around him. The girl he just helped was the first to snap him out of his thoughts. “Mr. What’s wrong? Are you ok?”

Refocusing, Wise hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do or rather what to prioritise; He could board the boat himself as he is most at risk of ether corruption or allow others before him board in order to keep the situation under control. For a moment thoughts from the hospital resurfaced. “The Hollow Knight,” his mind echoed. An unknown Ethereal-like guardian that protected the people of Sixth Street during the Hollow disaster a week prior. If by some chance, by some miracle he could transform into the Hollow Knight, Would he risk it? Risk it on some fever dream he had of being in the driver's seat. Of being in control of a powerful body that could potentially save them from this situation? Weighing the options, the odds were against him. On this small patch of land, there lies a giant that could easily destroy them, not to mention if he does turn, it’ll be over for his public image. No doubt Lady Luck has cursed him with these recent string of events. Another hollow formed around him, forcing him to suffer from ether corruption. Not to mention many lives were at stake here. So what was it that prevented him from risking it all to test his newfound theory? “Belle” Wise thought. That’s right, his sister. The only family he has left, if he weren’t around, then that’d mean Belle will have to endure their quest all by herself. That can’t happen, not while he was still around. It was his role as the older sibling to protect her from harm's way, even if it meant the risk of getting him killed, he didn’t care.

A hand then shot in front of Wise’s face, bringing him back to reality. For a moment he saw a younger version of Belle in his arms before she morphed into the girl he helped just before. The girl continued to wave her hand in order to make sure he was conscious. Seeing the girl and the people around him, Wise was reminded of the commissions he and Belle did in the past as Phaethon. No matter how hard life got, no matter how badly they were strapped for cash. They decided that they would be the most law abiding unlawful citizens. The amount of people they’ve rescued from the Hollows, the possessions that they were able to locate and all heartfelt memories they were able to preserve. None of this was possible if they didn’t have the slightest bit of humanity. Closing his eyes and taking a much needed breath, Wise came to a decision. He would stay and help no matter the risks.

Before Wise could respond to the girl however, noticing an object descending from the sky, Wise grabbed the girl and jumped back, landing on his behind. Quickly letting go of the child and darting his head back to the boat, Wise witnessed as the Ethereal’s tentacle rose from the wreckage, leaving behind nothing but rubble. They were now stranded.

But before anyone could react, a thunderous crackle could be heard nearby. Quickly turning to see the commotion, everyone lay witness to the monster’s tentacles as they lifted the boats into the air and with its might, crushed each vessel, allowing the wreck to fall towards the sea as they lost their foundation. If one were to observe closely, they could see the bodies of those who couldn’t abandon ship fast enough dangle within the wreckage, their blood giving the ships a new coat.

Wise of course was the first to point out the carnage that followed. “Oh my god, it’s wrecking all of the boats!” Wise shouted. One by one, more tentacles erupted from the seas, attacking any unlucky ships that were too slow in evacuating, the survivors struggling to swim back to the small island. Soon the once dark sea now illuminated by the glow of the ethereal was littered by debris and people struggling to stay afloat. With his eyes on the liveliness of the people, Wise sprung into action. Grabbing Ben’s hand, Wise began to run towards the survivors only to be pulled back due to Ben not moving an inch. Quickly turning around, Wise froze upon seeing the regret and frustration on Ben’s face. Anger and tears threatening to take over.

A moment of silence followed and a sob escaped Ben’s mouth with each rise of his shoulders. The feeling of grief came crashing down even harder with every second that passed. “Those people, the kids that we helped. They were on those ships.” Ben choked, a tear running down his cheek. “We helped them die. It’s all our fault,” Ben cried. Raising his right hand to his face, he allowed himself to wallow. Soon a hand rested on Ben’s shoulder with a reassuring grip. Raising his head, Ben weakly turned to the hand’s owner to find an equally sad looking Thomas.

“Boss” Thomas began. “You did the right thing. You looked after the little guys. It just didn’t end the way we expected, there was no way to know this could happen.” Thomas said. “We helped people, we gave them a chance that no one did, just like how Belobog gave us a chance. But our jobs not over,” Thomas gestured to the people still frozen in shock. “The work day isn’t over yet, there’s still work that needs to be done.”

Coughing into his fist, President Qi let himself be known once more. “Let this old man give you some advice. The battle stops for no one. It isn’t until you reel a fish in, do you have the chance to rest. Not only are you a superb fisherman, but you have a heart of gold, that’s why you helped those people evacuate. With that being said, it’s no wonder you three stood out amongst the crowd today. It’s up to you three to help everyone get out of here. Got it?” President Qi lectured.

Looking back and forth between Thomas, Qi and Wise, Ben then turned towards the carnage at sea with many still struggling to make it back to the island. Gradually Ben took in deep breaths in between sobs, fighting the urge to grieve, calming himself down. Opening his eyes, showing the confidence of a leader.

“Got it, thanks everyone.” Ben said. “Now, let’s think of a way out of this. How do we deal with this Kraken you called it? Can we call it that?”

With a nod, Wise confirmed some of the finer details. “Never have I ever seen this type of Ethereal before. Its size alone being its defining feature would make it easily distinguishable amongst Ethereals. So I think it’s safe to assume we discovered a new type of Ethereal and given the circumstances, I think the name Kraken fits quite well.”

Ben nodded, he then started pointing at the Kraken and tried to brainstorm with Wise. “Looking at the stone-like color and its ridges, I can assume that the Kraken is tough as nails. Most of its body is basically armored up besides the glowing bits. Think we can harm it from there.”

“Agreed, but how exactly would we go about actually harming it? We have no weapons.” Wise countered.

Furrowing his brows, Ben expressed his displeasure at not having his trusty weapon on such a occasion, “Tsk. if only I had my ram, I could probably smash through its armor like I do concrete or if i’m lucky, land a solid hit on its soft spots,” Ben said as he chastised himself.

With a sweat drop and a forced smile, Wise tried to get things back on track as Ben was the only combatant at Wise’s disposal. “Well we can assume that the Hollow’s expansion has caught the eyes of many, so taking down the Ethereal is one thing. On the other hand, all we have to do is wait for help.”

In shock, Ben’s eyes widened when a thought occurred to him. “Wait a moment, Proxy, the outside doesn't know about the Kraken. If they come here unprepared, a lot more people are going to die! We need to inform them, can you call the other Proxy to inform that Void Hunter we met not too long ago?”

As the words exited his mouth, Wise then began to blink as he processed the information. Contact the outside? Why didn’t he think about that first? Also, a Void Hunter would be incredible right now, come on Phaethon you’re slipping! Wise thought to himself. “That’s a great idea Ben, I’ll let Belle know.” Quickly Wise pulled out his phone, covering the screen from the rain that threatened to short circuit the device. Before he could turn it on however, the reflection of the cosmic-like Kraken reflected off the small screen, Wise couldn’t help himself but to steal a glance at the giant Ethereal when a thought struck him. Strange, why hasn’t it continued to attack? Ethereals should be attacking on sight.

Just then Wise’s phone came alive with Fairy taking up the majority of the screen. “No need to waste your time master. The most powerful AI in all of New Eridu has already informed the second-assistant, Belle of the situation. Would you like to be patched in?”

Nodding his head rapidly, Wise regained his focus as a seasoned Proxy. “Yes, connect me to Belle. Now.”

With a blink of the screen Fairy began to call Belle with a “roger” before going silent.

Soon the image of a worried Belle was displayed on Wise's phone screen, “Wise! Are you ok? How do you keep getting into these situations!?” Belle yelled in a semi panicked state.

Wise however, did not lose focus under his sister's distress. “Belle. Listen carefully, you need to inform Miyabi and the Defense Force that a 40 meter Ethereal is keeping us hostage on a small Coastal Reef island. We need as much firepower as we can in order to beat it, for now it’s not attacking for some reason, but I’d rather not test my luck right now.”

Belle then gave Wise a strange look, hearing how serious his voice sounded and the look on his face, Belle knew Wise wasn’t kidding around, but she herself as an experienced proxy couldn’t fathom what she just heard. “Bro, are you serious right now? You do know 40 meters is like a 12 story tall building right? For an Ethereal to be that large? It’s never been recorded .” Belle stated, yet all the meanwhile she gripped the desk holding her keyboard, hoping it was all a joke.

Wordlessly, Wise switched the camera view and gave Belle front row seats to what may be the worst horror movie of her life. As a gasp escaped her mouth, a metallic sound hit the ground. Quickly turning to the source of the noise, Belle laid her eyes on Grace who stared at the monster on the screen dumbfounded.

Peaking at the proxies phone, Ben popped up in the corner of the screen as he joined the conversation. “Grace is that you? What are you doing at the video store?”

“I was helping the managers promote the store, this week it’s my turn remember?” Grace said matter of factly.

“She was tinkering with Eos while her drones handed out flyers,” Belle rebutted. Grace then turned her head to the side and failed to whistle off the accusation.

At a loss for words, Wise got back to the matter at hand, looking back towards the Kraken, his face illuminated by its glow. “We’ll talk about Eos later, back to the matter at hand. Now that you see what we’re up against. We need all the help we can get. So can you inform Section Six and Soldier 11 for backup?” Wise said, all the while, small crystals began to form around his ears and began to slowly form its way onto his cheeks.

The sight on Belle and Grace’s end sent shivers down their spines as they witnessed the unique rapid corruption. Quickly Belle blurted out a warning to her brother, “Wise your cheek! You need to get out of there quick before it’s too late!”

Turning back to his phone, Wise watched himself in the small window of the app. Slowly he raised a hand to his face, delicately feeling the crystalline formation. Pursing his lips, he smiled and played off the situation, not wanting to worry anyone. “It’s alright Belle, as long as nothing dangerous happens, I can keep the corruption at bay. But for now we need help, again the Kraken, that’s what we’re calling it, is keeping everyone hostage. Any ships that attempted to escape the island were instantly destroyed. For now, we need to figure a way to evacuate or at least hide until help arrives," Wise said calmly.

Reluctantly, Belle nodded her head as she had to accept the situation for what it is, she couldn’t help her brother the same way their agents could. “Ok, alright. Informing Section Six now and agent Soldier 11 of the Defense Force.

Wise nodded with a smile. Grace then spoke up from over Belle’s shoulder, “Ben and…Thomas? You two stay safe as well, I’ll inform Anton and Sweetpea of the situation.”

“Roger and bring my ram if you can.” Ben said.

With a nod, Belle disconnected the call, leaving the fishing group with their perilous predicament.

“Boss, Mr. Proxy, what do we do now?” Thomas said as he looked around. All of a sudden a weight crashed into him from behind and wrapped itself around his hind legs, causing Thomas to scream in fright, forcing Ben to get into a fighting position. “Don’t let it take me, boss!”

Tilting his body, Wise looked around Thomas to find a child wrapped around his leg. Looking up, the rest of the children who managed to escape the kraken’s massacre stood to the side, unsure of what to do. Wise then looked toward Ben for guidance, both exchanging glances.

“Thomas, he's just a kid. No need to freeze up like that,”Ben said with a chuckle. “The job is clear, protect the weak. Let’s do what we do best, let’s get to work.” One by one the group began to calm down the panicked crowd, gathering them in one place instead of all around the island, Ben then directed those who volunteered to swim out and help those still floating around in the water.

For those who refused to work, Wise managed to calm them down with cold hard logic. “Everyone, that ethereal isn’t attacking us right now, for some reason it’s only keeping us on this island, but don’t worry. The Void Hunter Ms.Hoshimi Miyabi is on her way. If you can’t trust my words, then at least place your trust in her. Let’s stay calm and we will get out of this together.” Of course there were still those who disagreed despite the promise of safety, but the promise of a Void Hunter was enough to sway the people.

“Why the hell would we even listen to you? You’re basically half way corrupted!” An entitled looking business man said as he pointed towards Wise’s semi corrupted face. Many of the civilians however did not agree with the businessman as they didn’t see the logic behind it.

A school girl then spoke up in defense for Wise. “Hey mister, can you just shut up? That guy’s been helping everyone since the start of the Hollow catastrophe, the fact that he’s calm and still ready to help only means he knows what he’s doing. So why don’t you put a sock in it? The alternative being you can face that giant yourself.” A bunch of “yeahs” resounded from the crowd causing the business man to shrink back down in embarrassment.

Despite showing hostility, the Kraken didn’t show any signs of immediately killing everyone. So using this opportunity, the group led a rescue operation to save anyone who managed to swim to the island and regroup. With every extra life saved, morale increased ever so slightly. Taking a moment to himself, Wise allowed himself to finally crash down against the stone, his corruption creeping up on him. With a foggy mind, Wise pulled up his sleeve, gazing at the corruption as it spread to the tips of his fingers. With a sigh, he gazed back up towards the kraken, Wise stared into its green visor-like eyes. Then something stirred in him. Mesmerizedby the sight, Wise didn’t realize he started to breathe gradually, but rapidly with each passing second, the ether crystals now speeding up its growth as it encased his entire arm. In the core of his being Wise felt a slight warmth increasing in intensity as he continued to stare down the Kraken. Unconsciously, he furrowed his brows and grit his teeth, rage building up in him, his eyes slowly glowing ominously.

Then it began, everyone’s worst nightmare came to life as the Kraken began to stir. With a song-like cry, the Kraken shifted closer to the island, its tentacles wrapping itself around the land mass. Even the slightest movement shook the island, knocking people to the ground. Waves crashed into the rocky perimeter. Repositioning itself, the Kraken winded back its front tentacle behind its body, its colossal body made every action seem slow, but it’s sheer size made up for speed with the amount of space it took up and with immense power, it began to swipe its
tentacle in the direction of the small island. Reacting quickly, Wise grabbed the nearest person and jumped to the ground. “Everyone duck now!” he yelled. One by one, many civilians did as they were told and jumped towards the ground and laid flat on their stomachs. For a moment as everyone braced for impact, Wise quickly began to analyze his surroundings for a clue, a chance to escape or to distract his newfound enemy. What he witnessed instead made his heart drop. The only thing that stood out of place, only one person who didn’t hit the floor. There stood President Qi, still standing upright, his body language showed no intent of getting down. Stretching out his hand as if trying to miraculously grab the old man, Wise screamed at the top of his lungs, “President Qi, get down! Now!”

His words would fall deaf ears however as President Qi made no attempts at preserving his life. Within moments the Kraken’s tentacles made landfall, tearing apart the trees on the island with ease. As if time slowed down, Wise tried his best to reach out to President Qi from his low position to no avail, distraught seeping onto his face. Watching helplessly as the giant tentacle continued on its death course towards the old man in its path, Wise could only focus on the old man’s expression. In the small amount of time that he had left, President Qi mumbled words that Wise couldn’t quite make out, words that he felt he needed to hear. With death approaching, President Qi closed his eyes as he accepted his fate, not noticing a large oval-shaped shadow looming over him. And with a thunderous crash, the tentacle collided, a sickening crunch echoed throughout the island. Many winced as the force of the impact caused a slight shockwave, kicking up dust in the process. As the dust settled, Wise’s mouth stood agape at the aftermath he witnessed.

For a moment, Wise was sure he was about to witness a gruesome death, but instead witnessed an incredible clutch from Ben as he jumped in just the nick of time. Carrying a boulder to act as a shield, Ben dug it into the ground, absorbing the impact of the attack by pressing his arm against the rocky surface. Stopping the behemoth of an attack with pure strength alone. The boulder crumbled into pieces, falling to the ground. A painful groan escaping the bear’s lips.

“Just in the-” Ben gasps. “Nick of time.” Ben said as he clutched onto his left arm for support, Ben turned to President Qi. “You’re time’s not up just yet President, whatever you gotta say, say it loud and proud.” Collapsing onto one knee, Ben grunted.

Running up to check on his friend, Wise took a look at Ben’s bent arm. “Ben your arm, it’s broken. We need to find you a splint or something.” Wise said before he was pushed to the side by Ben’s good arm.

“Not now Proxy, take a look!” Ben yelled as he pointed towards the beast. Turning to his side, Wise witnessed as the Kraken had readied its tentacle for another attack. Looking around quickly, Ben spotted an even bigger boulder next to the fishing area, but with his broken arm, he had no chance of moving it. Gritting his teeth, Ben had no choice but to change his plans. Taking charge, the bear led the people the best he could. Using his imposing appearance and booming voice, he issued out orders. “Everyone! Run towards the backside of the island or duck in the water! It probably learned not to strike so high, so we need to change our tactics!” Quickly the civilians split up, most followed the crowd as they ran towards the left of the dock, hoping they would make it in time. Those that were closest to the water, dove into the dark sea. Observing the retreating party, Ben calculated as fast as he could to see if everyone could dodge this upcoming attack. However, by his calculations, there would be casualties due to too many elderly lacking in agility. With resolve, he ran towards the few who were straggling behind and with precision, he swooped them up with his left arm and threw them towards the sea ensuring their safety. With nowhere else to go and nothing to shield him from the attack, Ben braced himself for the life ending hit.

On the other side of the island, as Wise and Thomas evacuated to safety, they turned around to witness Ben not beside them. Stopping in their tracks, the two skidded along the dirt and inspired by his earlier feats, the two shared a look with a nod. In a desperate sprint, Wise gave everything he had to reach towards Ben, Thomas on the other hand grabbed a loose torn up plank of wood from the torn up dock and with a spin, he threw it towards his boss and friend like a frisbee. As Wise reached Ben’s backside, he only had moments to inform Ben of the plan as the Kraken’s tentacle hovered over land.

“Ben grab the board and block the attack! I’ll help you!” Wise yelled out.

Looking down towards the proxy, Ben gave a confused look before swiping his head towards his left and within a second only to outstretch his hand instinctively to catch the incoming projectile. As if he practiced the motion a thousand times, Ben readied the object in his hands in front of him before actually taking a look at the thin flimsy board. In shock, Ben once again braced for impact, digging his paws into the ground only for it to slide from the slick mud. “Proxy it’s too brittle, it’s not going to protect anyone, get behind me, I can at least take the hit for you!” Ben yelled. But Wise ignored his orders. Pressing himself his entire arm up towards the board, Wise mirrored Ben’s stance, not giving him the room to argue.

Please work! Wise thought to himself, adrenaline pumping in his veins. If that dream was real, if I really do have powers! The tentacles now inches from the two men. Then help me get out of this situation! Clenching his eyes shut, he readied himself to take the attack. And with a boom and a crash the attack demolished their flimsy shield, knocking the two away with Ben rolling along the ground towards the dock. Wise on the other hand was sent flying towards the sea, blood dripping from his body.

Mustering up his remaining strength, Ben pushed himself up the ground in time to see Wise’s descent. “Manager!” Ben yelled out before stumbling back towards the ground. Thomas, who narrowly avoided the attack by hiding behind the rock formation, quickly ran up to assist Ben to his feet. With labored breaths, Ben placed his one good arm around Thomas’s shoulder and began walking towards the dock. “Thomas, we need to get him, we need to get the proxy before he drowns. He took the attack, Thomas! There’s no way he would be okay after that.” Ben said. However, before the bear thiren could take a step in the proxy’s location, he was suddenly tugged to the side. Soon he was dragged along by his coworker as Thomas made his way towards the rest of the civilians.

Before Ben could protest, Thomas cried out in outrage. “Enough boss! You’re gravely hurt and our friend is gone. We need to wait for help, we need to play it safe!” Thomas said. Being supported by his compatriot, Ben felt the fear Thomas was feeling as his whole body was shaking. Despite that, Thomas was still prioritizing his life. So who was he to put his coworkers' life on the line?

Taking a sharp inhale, Ben didn’t say a word as he made it behind the island where everyone else was hiding. Deep down he knew Thomas was right, but it didn't make it any easier to abandon a friend. Making it towards the back of the island Ben noticed that something was off about the number of civilians. So, using his accounting experience, he began counting the number of people present and realized that at least half of the people were missing. Looking around, Ben spotted one of the Fishing Association staff members and inquired about the situation. “Hey you.” Ben said as he pointed towards a middle aged man. “There were more of us a minute ago, where is everyone else?” he asked, his mind wandering to darker places.

Despite the chaotic situation, the man gave a small smile. “It’s ok Mr.Bigger, as luck would have it, we found a small opening in the back of the island. It’s just big enough to fit the children in and a few adults. Some of us argued at first when we found it, but then we reflected on everything that happened today and figured that we really needed to step up as adults.” The man said proudly. Pointing towards the opening of the small cave, the heads of a few children poked out, fear in their eyes. “We decided that if anyone is going to get out of here alive, it should be them.”

The response didn’t quite sit well with Ben as no one should give up on their life so easily, but then again, it was the most logical solution given the circumstances. That didn’t stop Ben from consoling the civilians though. “Listen up everyone, good job avoiding that Ethereal's attacks so far, help should be minutes away at worst. So let's keep our morale up, yeah?” Ben said as he himself tried to hold it together. However, his words of encouragement would spell their doom as the Kraken’s next move caught them off guard.

With another song-like roar, the Kraken began to pummel the island with more and more of its tentacles, causing everyone to slightly panic.

“What is it doing now?” Ben asked himself. As the Kraken’s attack continued, each strike began to morph and slow down more and more. Yet the damage to the small island morphed as each tentacle began to grab and pull the unstable terrain towards its main body as the tentacles began to wrap itself around the terrain. With widened his eyes a thought occurred in Ben as he had a suspicion of the Kraken’s intent. With bated breaths, he hoped to whatever god was out there that it didn’t intend to do what he was thinking. However, the beast's next move would all, but prove his suspicions. With a tug of its mighty limbs, the Kraken propelled itself forward, dragging its heavy body along the seafloor. Like a warhead, the Kraken exploded from the water and landed on the open fishing area once occupied by the people. Seeing this, Ben issued a new order for the people in panic. “All of you that hid, stay quiet and don’t panic! Everyone else, do your best…"Ben said with painful acceptance. Slowly, everyone witnessed as larger tentacles wrapped itself around the small mountain, each one slithering like a snake with a mind of its own. Its grip and weight crushed the rock formation underneath it, showing its immense power.

|

Just offshore of the island, debris from the crushed vessels and survivors who survived the Kraken’s initial carnage struggled to stay afloat. The survivors, having witnessed the monster’s attacks on the island, decided the best course of action was to stay floating in the water, allowing for those on land to garner its attention. Amongst the debris laid Wise, his bones broken, blood seeping from his wounds, his body numb. If there was a silver lining to his otherwise stupid plan, it would be that the attack didn’t immediately kill him. Struggling as he might, he failed to move his arms in an attempt to stay afloat. With every wave that crashed over him, he choked. With every moment he went under only to barely stay afloat. With no strength left in his body, Wise succumbed to the dangers of the sea as he began to sink beneath its surface.

The world under the waves was much calmer than the surface, quieter too. It gave Wise a moment of respite as he gazed towards the surface with the reflection of the moon that grew more distant by the second. Using this opportunity he began to dwell on what he believed to be his final thoughts. God, who was I kidding. Belle was right, I really was just hallucinating this entire time. Come on Wise! Being conscious while turning into an Ethereal? Stupid! The moment the paramedics found me in the Hollow should have been a clear sign that I wasn’t in my right mind. Why did I want this to be true so bad? Am I just so bored of my life? Is that it? Was it because me and Belle have gotten nowhere with our investigation after all these years? Rage began to build up in Wise the longer he questioned himself. The ether crystals on his arms now spread and encased his torso, the added weight speeding along his descent towards the ocean floor. Not good, the ether corruption has gotten too severe! Crap why did I want to fight the Kraken so bad!? Please, if I do change, let me drown at sea so no innocents get hurt. Grunting in discomfort, Wise reached his limit of holding his breath. With burning lungs, he stayed calm as best he could despite knowing he would either drown or suffocate. Belle, I'm so sorry I was such a useless brother. Be better than me, find our teacher, find a nice person to settle with. Live a life that couldn't, Wise thought. Memories of his life flashing before his eyes, from the days at Helios Academy where he and his sister would study vigorously under their teacher Carole Arna, to the fall of Old Eridu, the struggle of building a new home for him and Belle, to becoming a legendary proxy and after many years, finally, they got a solid lead on their teacher, only to end up with one of them going down somewhere nobody would find him. Now fully encased in a large crystal, Wise laid motionless, unable to move, his body hitting the sea bed. With a lock of oxygen and a fading consciousness, Wise began to lose the light in his eyes. His last thoughts focused on the only feeling he had left. An insatiable hunger that persisted since the day he awoke in that hospital bed, thoughts of staring down the Kraken lingered in his mind. As he let the darkness take him, his eyes began to glow more than ever.

Chapter Text

Back on the surface of the water, the turbulent seas remained untamed with the few remaining survivors struggling to stay afloat. One man in particular who initially swam towards the island, remained floating on top the shallows as he wished to avoid getting close to the large Ethereal currently sitting on top the island. As the man gazed towards the large beast that illuminated the area, he suddenly felt that something was amiss, it was initially a gut feeling, but he felt that the situation was about to shift. Whether it was good or bad, he would soon find out. Turning his back on the Ethereal, he began scanning the area, the man looked for anything that stood out of place. As his eyes scanned left to right, a small detail caught his eye, quickly the man refocused on one area that was emitting a bunch of bubbles that erupted from the seas depts. Narrowing his eyes to get a better look, the man was caught off guard as a mini shockwave sent a rush of bubbles exploding towards the surface. Had it not been for the heavy rain, he could have sworn he heard the sound of glass shattering. What followed afterwards was a chilling experience for the civilians as the area where the shockwave occurred began to emit a slight green light that got brighter and brighter as it made its way towards the surface. But before the light broke through the water, it stopped. Then it began to make its way towards the man as if it were alive, startling him. With a gasp, the man did his best to stay absolutely still as to not garner its attention. With some luck, the light swam underneath the floating man, giving him the opportunity to see the fire-like streaks that adorned the body of an unknown creature. Afraid, the man dared not move a muscle until he was rescued, risking hypothermia from being submerged for so long.

As the light swam towards the island, the Kraken immediately stopped its assault on the people. Ignoring the civilians it was about to prey on, the Kraken then turned towards the dock, sensing something unseen by the civilians. It was a familiar feeling, an energy that lured it from its slumber to threaten its territory. Before the ruined dock a long slender arm rose from the water and gripped onto a broken plank and crushed it with its grip. In one smooth motion the main body of the creature erupted from the water and landed on solid ground, water dripping from its defined armor-like skin.

Gazing towards the backside of the tall figure, the man stared in disbelief. A question escaping his lips, “no way, is that?” Like a switch being flipped, the once silent Kraken became active once more, this time with more vigor. With its song-like roar, it jabbed the figure with its armored tentacle in an attempt to impale the new intruder. Effortlessly however, the figure only shifted its body to the side in order to dodge the attack, its eyes never leaving the kraken’s main body. Ben, who witnessed the Kraken attacking a new target, got excited at the prospect of reinforcements. Believing that Grace and his newfound friends arrived on the scene.

“Thomas, it's fighting someone, I think Prez and the rest arrived, help me get to them.” Ben said. Having heard the rest of the Belobog crew had arrived, the fear Thomas was feeling melted in an instant and with an eager nod, he helped Ben towards the island’s fishing area. Their hopes were crushed however as they only found a single person who was effortlessly dodging the Kraken’s attacks instead of their friends.

Gazing at the battle before them, Ben tried to make out the figure. Who was that? Is that the biker from the Outer Ring? No he’s too bulky and has a tail. Wasn’t there a Thiren in that maid company the Proxy was affiliated with? No, that one was a wolf thiren. Then who exactly is this? Ben thought. By now the earlier drizzle had evolved into a rough downpour, the elements had not been too kind on any of the people, but discomfort aside, the weather only added to the dire situation. Normally heavy rain concealed finer details that most would miss, not only would it ruin footholds in a fight, but it can even conceal attacks coming from afar, and that is what the Kraken took advantage of. Coming in wide from just off the coast, the Kraken whipped its big tentacle for a swipe at the new combatant, the trajectory would most likely strike his blind spot. Being a spectator, Ben had a better understanding of the battlefield as he himself didn’t need to focus on what’s in front of him so he could pick up things a combatant could not. Regardless, Ben could only warn the individual as he was in no condition to join the battle. “Hey watch out! To your left!” Ben roared. However, the person didn’t move, he just stood there waiting with his arm outstretched in the tentacle's direction. seemingly aware of the attack the individual readied himself. What happened next shocked the two bears however as the tentacle struck true, but rather than sending the fighter flying, it only caused him to slide against the ground, leaving a trail in the mud. The attack essentially blocked, all with one arm no less.

Having witnessed its power beforehand, the two bears couldn’t believe their eyes. “That’s impossible, who on earth could take such an attack barehanded?” Thomas said. Narrowing their eyes, Ben tried to make out the fighter's shape. Tall, muscular, a tail and metallic looking armor. Wait there’s no way! Ben thought.

“Wait a minute there's no way. How did he get here?” Ben muttered. Finally giving the two bystanders some attention, the figure turned its body in order to get a good look at them. There in all his majesty was New Eridu’s hottest topic. “The Hollow Knight. It’s really him, he’s real.” Gazing at the Hollow Knight, Ben couldn’t quite explain it, but the knight for some reason held a familiarity that made him feel like he was in good hands. That the individual was capable of handling this situation and what came next only proved his thoughts.

With another ear piercing roar that caused the bears to recoil in pain, the Kraken grew more ferocious as it increased the intensity of its attack. With its armored tentacles it swiped down on the knight’s position causing him to jump to the side before jumping backwards in front of a large boulder. Turning around, the Knight dug his fingers into the boulder and easily pried it out of the ground. With a twist of his hip, he launched the boulder directly towards the Kraken’s eyes. The immense force of the throw allowed the boulder to reach high velocities, preventing the Kraken from reacting to the attack in time. With a large crash, the boulder crumbled on impact, the Kraken recoiling in pain. Its tentacles wrapped around the island’s mountain tightened as it tried to keep its balance.

As the Kraken recovered from the surprise projectile, it went back to jabbing the Knight with its pointy tentacles, trying to pierce him. However, what it wasn’t expecting was its target to be incredibly agile, using his small size to his advantage, the Knight expertly dodged every attempt at an attack. Jumping onto the rocky formation he began to climb closer to the Kraken, intending to close the distance for attack. As he leaped high into the air, he used his clawed hand into the rock in order to give him a pseudo platform for his next ascension. Quickly making his way up, his position now in front of the Kraken.

Seeing this, the Kraken unwrapped one of its tentacles near the Knight’s position and quickly swatted him away, his close proximity forcing the Kraken to give up winding up for extra power in favor of speed. Unexpectedly, rather than jumping over or away from the attack, the Knight instead jammed his clawed hand deeper into the rock and copied the movement with his foot as well. Then he braced himself as he opened up his arm to catch the attack. With precision, he expertly clamped onto the tentacle as it made contact and continued by freeing his other limbs from the rock formation; using his enhanced strength, he then tugged as hard as he could and tore the tentacle off of the Kraken, causing it to roar in pain.

Seizing the opportunity, he then dug his claws back into the rock and propelled himself upwards towards the summit. Landing on top of its rubbery flesh, he then lunged towards the cosmic looking portion of flesh and with a winded back fist, he punched as hard as he could. But before contact was made, the Kraken showed off its unique biology by condensing its head rapidly, allowing for its armor to seal up any openings. Upon contact, it was revealed that his attack only slightly dented the armor plating. Its defensive capabilities are seemingly more sturdy than any armored Ethereal he knew of.

Sensing a threat approaching the Knight then flipped into the air, narrowly avoiding another tentacle. As he was midair, he observed the remaining limbs began to rise around the Ethereal before homing in on his vulnerable position. With a spin, he ever so slightly changed his trajectory and with a punch to the first incoming limb, he managed to use it as a platform to jump towards another tentacle. Using each one as a platform, he closed the gap within moments. Grabbing hold of the base of one tentacle he ripped it right off of the Kraken’s main body before doing the same to the adjacent limbs. As he grabbed onto one of the front armored tentacles, with a tug, he found that it wouldn’t budge, a sign of it being as tough as it was dangerous. Jumping back onto the ground, he avoided a swipe from one of the armored limbs.

As he landed on the ground, he observed the Ethereal as it began to glow and convulse similarly to how the Dead End Butcher pulsed before transforming. The open wounds from the torn of tentacles then shined brightly as rainbow colored limbs regenerated instantly before fading in color. Its newfound limbs now have the same armored plating as before, this time with a serrated edge. Recognizing the unique characteristics of the Ethereal, he figured that the limbs were expendable as they could always be regenerated. Meaning the only way to deal any real damage was to strike at the main body, but how does one get past its armor?

Unexpectedly, the Kraken reared back on its hind limbs, exposing its underside. What laid beneath was a horror show as each of its suckers harbored a rotating hook like accessory, all of which led inwards to a spikey mouth. And with a swift lunge, the Kraken enveloped the Knight in a death hold. Wrapping it’s body around him, the hooks on it’s suckers nesseled into the chinks of his armor-like body. Not realizing that its hooks didn’t penetrate his skin, the Kraken continued to shift its body around in order to shred using its hooks.

Having witnessed the insane fight going on before him, Ben recoiled in horror as the Hollow Knight got crushed. Gritting his teeth, he stood there frustrated at the fact that he couldn’t help. Feeling useless, he could only observe. Suddenly a humming sound rang out, increasing in pitch at regular intervals. A moment later the kraken thrashed around in pain, crawling towards the sea, then lifted itself just high enough off the ground for Ben to see an intense rainbow light being emitted from underneath the Ethereal. As the kraken threw itself into the water, the light followed it like a pillar, the raw smell of burnt flesh radiating the battlefield before being dispelled by the rain.

Seeing if the Hollow Knight was ok, Ben quickly realized that the fiery rainbow light was coming from the knight's mouth, an impossible feat for any human or thiren. As the Hollow Knight closed its mouth, the glowing aliens adoring his pack began to lose their vibrant color as well. Questions raced through Ben’s mind, it can’t be, could he really be an Ethereal? No wait, think Ben, he could be an advanced automaton deployed by the Defense Force, yeah that has to be it. Otherwise me and everyone else would be in terrible danger after the two Ethereals finished their turf war.

Thinking back on the video he watched on the Interknot, Ben recalled how the Hollow Knight chose to save civilians rather than hunting them down. So with that thought in mind, believing that the Knight was an automaton, he’d rather put his faith in the Knight rather than turning him into an enemy.

As the kraken rose from the sea once more, it looked down on the Knight before catching sight of something in the distance. Quickly turning off its bioluminescence, the Kraken sank back into the sea, its naturally dark skin allowed it to quickly disappear into the dark depths.

Not understanding why the Ethereal decided to retreat, Ben could only think of a possible ambush. With that thought in mind, Ben was about to warn the Hollow Knight before the distinct humming sound caused his ears to twitch. Looking over his shoulder, his eyes widened and a grin found its way onto his face as multiple helicopters and ships made their way towards the island, searchlights being operated as they glazed over the waters and the island. In the distance you can hear the cheering from the civilians as they awaited rescue.

From up above a light shined down on the island before landing on Ben and Thomas. After a few seconds a helicopter began to descend, but stopped a good distance from the ground before an orange figure jumped out of the open door. Landing with slightly bent knees, a silver haired woman wearing an orange uniform got down in a low stance, her hand hovering just behind her where her blade was sheathed. Her sights locked on the only other person in the fishing area, the Hollow Knight.

Who was this person? Ben thought. For a moment he was reminded of Anby from the Cunning Hares, but this person's outfit was different and although they looked similar and had the same battle stance, the difference was distinct enough to differentiate the two. For now, he would need to clear up the misunderstanding. “Excuse me, miss?” Ben began, yet the stranger didn’t make a move, only for a moment her eyes shifted towards Ben, an acknowledgment of his presence.

“Stand back citizen, the Defense Force will take it from here.” She said, drawing her blade from its scabbard, the soldier pointed it toward the knight, startling Ben.

Holding up his left hand, he tried to calm the soldier down. “Wait a minute miss, don’t you know who that is? That’s the Hollow Knight that saved civilians from the Sixth Street hollow disaster a week ago.”

His attempts were in vain as the soldier’s resolve was unbroken. “I said get back civilian. I’ve fought a lot of Ethereals in my line of work and I can say with one hundred percent confidence that this is indeed an Ethereal.” In the soldier’s eyes the unmoving knight stood there, analyzing her every move. Then a familiar voice erupted from the soldier’s radio.

“Soldier 11 do you copy? Why did you just jump out of the helicopter?” A familiar voice asked.

That voice, it’s the other proxy! Ben thought. That must mean the managers have even more connections that we don’t know about. In that case, maybe I can appeal to her soft side.

Placing her left hand on her earpiece, Soldier 11 responded quickly. “Affirmative, eyes on target now. Preparing to engage.”

“Wha-,” before Belle could respond, Soldier 11 had already closed the distance, her blade ready to connect with the knight’s neck. However, underestimating the Knight’s speed, Soldier 11 narrowly missed her mark as the Knight leaned backwards, her blade slicing through air. Using his momentum, the Knight went in for an up kick that would have struck Soldier 11’s core had she not expertly redirected the attack with her free arm. Using the time it took for the Knight to regain his footing, she jumped backwards to put some distance between the two. Whilst maintaining eye contact with her opponent, Soldier 11 took a moment to look down at her shaking hand. That kick didn’t look like much, but it had so much power behind it. Better not let the next one connect. She thought. Looking back up, she charged in once again. She decided to switch to a more aggressive tactic this time, short, quick swings to knock off her opponent's balance and strike during an opening. Using her training and experience in the Defense Force, soldier 11 attacked the Knight with a flurry of slices. First a horizontal slash to the neck coming from the left, then the right, followed by a thrust to his stomach, then a slice back towards the head before a diagonal attack finishes the combo. Each one however was blocked or parried by the Knight, sparks flying off his armor with each blow. Using the same pattern over and over again, Soldier 11 quickly noticed that the Knight reacted slightly faster as time went on, positioning its limbs to take on the next anticipated attack. With more fire in her eyes, she was ready to land a decisive blow as the Knight was conditioned into her trap. Dawning the same stance she used for a neck slice she winded her blade back behind her left shoulder and rather than swinging her arm for the same attack, she instead switched her grip so that her blade was now in front of her chest. And with one motion, she twisted her waist ever so slightly as her feet hit the ground in order to drive the blade into the Knight’s gut.

With the recognizable sound of metal being punctured, Soldier 11 successfully thrusted her blade into the Knight’s gut. For a moment, she relished at the idea of finally dealing some notable damage to the being in front of her. Unexpectedly the Knight didn’t flinch whatsoever at the attack, instead it shot its hand out, gripping her hand in the process. Like stone the Knight did not budge, he did not allow her to use her weapon. With his other hand he grabbed her by the neck before lifting her up into the air, severely restricting her movements. With a slight squeeze of his hand, the Knight began to choke the life out of her. Grasping at the hand to her throat, Soldier 11 muttered the only words that could save her from this situation. “Geh…Trigger, now!”

“Roger that. Supporting fire incoming.” Off in the distance over the Knights shoulder, Soldier 11 witnessed a blue light make itself known as it contrasted with the dark clouds. Coming alive the light danced around before charging towards the two, striking the Knight in the back. Letting go of the girl, the Knight fell to his knees, electricity circulating his body. Falling to the ground Soldier 11 coughed wildly as she gasped for air. Afterwards, she reached for her sword that laid on the ground before, hoping that the enemy was too stunned to react.

However, that soon turned out to be a mistake as her laps in judgement during a battle allowed the Knight to land a clean punch to her face, sending her flying. Using her momentum to her advantage, Soldier 11 allowed her body to roll before using the spin to jump back onto her feet. With blood dripping down her eye, her vision was distorted between orange and darkness due to her shattered goggles. Ripping her goggles free from her face, she discarded the broken equipment before sheathing her sword back in its scabbard, ready to end the Ethereal before her. That was when a search light shined on the both of them, her earpiece coming alive with Belle’s voice delivering some urgent news.

“Soldier 11 do you copy? Do you copy? We have eyes on you now. That thing you’re engaged with isn’t the Ethereal we’re after. I repeat it is not the targeted Ethereal!” Belle relayed.
Confusion found its way on Soldier 11’s face upon hearing the news.

What she wasn’t expecting however was the sound of heavy footsteps running towards her before the owner of said steps locked their arms around her, stopping her from moving. With the sudden restriction to her freedom, Soldier 11 struggled in their grasp before a voice called out to her.

“Hey stop struggling will you! My name is Ben Bigger. I’m a friend of the proxies, you need to calm down and listen to me!” The voice spoke out. Upon hearing the mentioning of the proxies, Soldier 11 was reminded of Crimson Twilight, her face softening ever so slightly. Yet she did not budge.

Gently looking over her soldier, she saw the Bear thiren she assumed to be a civilian holding her down. “Let go of me this instant, you are in grave danger with this Ethereal running around.” Soldier 11 said as she gestured towards the Hollow Knight who was in a human-like boxing stance.

Gazing at the night himself, Ben observed it for a moment with a glare only for it to lose its combat stance after a moment. Instead it jumped on top of the island’s peak and began staring off into the water where the Kraken was last seen. Looking down at the girl in his arms, Ben questioned her, “are we good now? Will you calm down?” Not responding to his question, Soldier 11 instead nodded in affirmation.

Convinced, Ben let the orange soldier go before backing away carefully. “I’m sorry for getting all handsy, miss, but there’s more important matters to discuss. First of all, we need to evacuate the civilians, then deal with the Kraken before it causes more damage.”

Now focused, the soldier began to analyze the situation. First her eyes scanned Ben up and down. Noting the injuries on his right arm. Then she shifted her gaze at the Ethereal she was just fighting, it stood there unmoving, odd for an Ethereal. Then back down towards the ruined docks, multiple boats pulled up with many civilians returning to the open area.

Nodding her head, she spoke into her earpiece. “Soldier 11 reporting in, I have momentarily dealt with a threat known as the Ether warrior-”

“Hollow Knight.” Ben interrupted only to be ignored by the soldier.

“Contact has been made with one Ben Bigger, a bear thiren civilian caught up in the hollow disaster. Requesting medical assistance and evacuation pronto.” As she finished her report, the helicopter that she jumped out of slowly descended towards the island, landing on the open area. With the rushed opening of the helicopter door, out came the Belobog crew along with Eos.

Rushing towards Ben first was Anton who quickly looked over Ben before grabbing his arm and yelling straight into it. “Bro! Are you alright? Who did this to you!? Why i otta, when I get my hands on them!” Anton exclaimed as he shook his fist.

Striding up to the three next were Koleda and Grace and although they were concerned, they were a lot calmer than Anton. Placing her hands on her hips, Koleda eyed Ben and Thomas up and down before pointing at the two bears. “You two have a lot of explaining to do when we get back, but for now I’m just glad you two are safe. Now let’s get you two checked out.” Koleda said as she grabbed both bears before walking back to the copter. She doesn't get far however as Grace picks her up off the ground by her waist. “Wha-hey! Grace, what are you doing? Put me down now!” Koleda argued.

Emerging from behind Grace, Eos sauntered up and ran around the group. One of his hands laid on his forehead as he searched the area. Finding nothing, Eos ran up towards Ben before Belle’s voice rang out, her question sending a shiver down Ben’s spine.

“Hey Ben, quick question. Where’s my brother?” Belle said through Eos. The question, although innocent, alarmed Ben, causing him to sweat slightly. For the rest of the part, they looked around the island, not noticing Wise in the immediate vicinity.

Bringing a hand up to cover his mouth, Ben couldn’t quite find the right words to deliver the news. “Oh god,” Ben mumbled out, not noticing what he just said. The accidental slip being caught by everyone currently present. Tensing up in anticipation, their minds began to wander as they came to their own conclusion with what info they had. Including the ever so serious Soldier 11 crossed her arms as she stood behind the group, her eyes latched to the ground as her heart ached ever so slightly.

Alarmed, Belle pressed Ben further, this time with more urgency. “Oh god? What do you mean oh god? Ben, where’s my brother?” Her voice trembled as she stood in front of Ben with her arms on Eos’s hips.

Dwelling on the events of what happened mere minutes ago, Ben grew more flustered. Not wanting to betray the female proxy by lying, he figured he should come clean. Mustering up his courage, Ben took a moment to find the right words, the silence only made everyone’s anticipation grow more. “Proxy, I don’t know how to tell you this, but-” pointing out towards the sea with his left arm, Ben opened his hand to gesture towards the general area of where he last saw Wise. “Your brother took a pretty nasty hit meant for me and was sent flying in that direction,” Ben said as he turned back towards Eos. The little Bangboo terminal could only stare off into the distance as it followed Ben’s gesture, taking a few steps forward, but not so much that it strayed from the group, Belle stared off into the distance.

“Proxy,” Ben started. “An attack like that took out my arm even with a boulder between us. The attack that sent your brother flying. It couldn’t have been good. I don’t think he’ll make-” Ben said before being punched in the leg by Koleda and being shushed by a sad looking Grace.

Shaking in anger, Anton exploded at Ben, chastising him for making such an assumption. “Don’t finish that sentence bro! There’s no way the Proxy can be gone, he just can’t. I know he’s made of tougher stuff than the average bro, he’ll show up eventually. In fact, let’s look for him now! Heck maybe someone already did, I mean there’s a bunch of rescue ships out in the water!” Clenching his fist, Anton marched away towards the docks, ready to ask them for an exclusive search party. But before he could get far Grace stopped him from leaving as she grabbed his hand. “What the? Grace let go! We have to find the Proxy!”

Looking at Anton straight in the eyes, Grace shook her head in disappointment. “We can’t do that Anton. As much as I want to find the manager as well, we have a job to do, remember? That giant Ethereal I told you about, it’s still out there and we made a deal with the Defense Force to accompany them in exchange for approval to rescue Ben and Thomas ourselves,” Grace explained.

With a sigh, Anton, as boisterous as ever, agreed despite wanting to find the proxy. “That’s right, a bro never goes back on his word!” Belle on the other hand looked back and forth in disbelief, only to accept the situation and began simmering by herself.

“Ok, alright, we take care of the threat then find my brother. Agreed?” Belle said. Receiving various nods she continued. “Fairy, I need you to find Wise and that massive Ethereal.” A “roger” from Fairy rang out from Eos’s speakers before going silent.

Smiling with confidence, Ben shared his thoughts as Koleda escorted Thomas to the helicopter. “I’m sorry I won’t be of much help, but with the Defense Force here, I feel like we have a shot now.”

Placing a hand on his shoulder, Grace gave Ben some words of reassurance, “It’s alright Ben, even if you can’t participate the way you usually do. You can still help out, after all…I’ve got a brand new baby I've been wanting to test out!” Grace exclaimed excitedly, drool dripping from her mouth. When all of a sudden a green blur jumped over them and crashed into the ground. Rising from the dust stood the Hollow Knight, a threatening hum emanating from his body as his fire-like marking shined on his body. And with an explosive leap, the Knight jumped towards the rescue ships.

Belle gasped in shock at finally seeing the mysterious fighter from the Sixth Street hollow incident. “Is that him? The Hollow Knight?” She said as she replayed a video of the Knight on her second monitor, observing his details.

Stepping forward, Koleda, who hadn’t witnessed Soldier 11’s fight from the copter, cried out in shock, her mouth agape, “holy shit he’s real?” Grace who stood behind Koleda gave her arm a light slap, reminding her to mind her language. “Right, shit my bad.” Another slap found its way on the red head's arm. “Dammit, I mean, I’m sorry. I’ll watch my tongue now.”

Whistling in appreciation, Anton admired the Knight’s muscles. “No wonder he sent you flying, orange girl, he’s got some well defined muscles. But wait, wasn't he an Ethereal?” Anton said only to receive a cold glare from Soldier 11.

Interrupting the group of people, Fairy came alive with an emergency warning, her words startling everyone present. “Warning large Ethereal readings due east, estimated 1600 meters off coast.”

Looking towards the east of the island, everyone present ran towards the water, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Ethereal in question. Belle tightened her fists, anger taking over as she wishes to catch sight of the Ethereal that hurt her brother.

“The Kraken, it’s doing it again!” Ben yelled in disbelief. “It’s going to target all of the evacuating people so that they can’t escape!” A series of gasps and words of shock escaped everyone’s lips as they realized the carnage that would follow.

Out at sea, Pub Sec were hard at work as they pulled people out of the water, navigating the debris with their searchlights and followed the sounds of people yelling for help. As Pub Sec continued their rescue, unbeknownst to them, a large threat lay just beneath their boats. Ready to strike, the Kraken illuminated its body with its purple glow alarming all of the first responders. Then it rose from the sea, pushing away all who were unfortunate enough to be on top of it. The newly arrived force were too stunned to speak or act as they’ve never witnessed such an unbelievable sight before. Just like before, panicked screams rang out from the terrified civilians, begging to escape from this nightmare. But despite their begging, only a few ships sped away as they were likely new or cowardly officers. The rest however continued to save as many people as they could, this time with more urgency.

Putting a hand to block the Kraken’s glow, Grace squinted as she took in the sheer size of the Ethereal. Whistling in appreciation, she began to walk towards the copter, the rest of the Belobog crew following after. “Its sheer size is highly suspicious, for it to be created, an ether rich atmosphere such as the one in Hollow Zero is the only way something this big can evolve. There must be something in the water for it to be drawn into this area, let alone for a hollow to form specifically in this spot.”

Belle who was lagging behind was staring off into space before being picked up by Koleda who slung Eos beneath her arm. “Stop daydreaming Proxy, we got an Ethereal to stop and you’re unfortunately the only Proxy around that can come up with a plan to stop it.”

An absent minded “uh-huh,” was the only words Belle muttered as she muted her mic. Twirling in her chair, Belle focused on one screen that held the image of the Hollow Knight. Her eyes traced its features carefully. Thoughts of her conversation with her brother resurfacing “Belle, I think I can transform into an Ethereal, I think I'm the Hollow Knight,” Wise said. Tears welled up in her eyes as she thought of her brother becoming an Ethereal. The fact that it hasn’t attacked anyone goes to show that it’s not a regular Ethereal, that or it’s too busy due to being in the middle of a turf war. But what if it really was Wise in there and that he had full control? Sighing due to all of the stress, she turned Fairy for a concrete answer. “Fairy, do you recognize Wise’s biosignature in the Hollow Knight?”

Taking over the main screen, Fairy’s icon turned into a loading screen before returning to normal shortly. “Negative second assistant. There is no genetic relation between the Hollow Knight and Master. You should know that once a person turns into an Ethereal, there is no way to change back nor retain any genetic information.”

Burying her face in her hands, Belle groaned with worry. Of course she knew that people change upon corruption, but she could hope that whatever was going on, Wise would be ok. That was when a voice snapped her out of her worries. “Proxy! Proxy! Are you there?” Koleda said.

Unmuting herself, Belle got back to her proxy work by leading the agents. “Yeah I'm here, just analyzing some intel. What’s going on?”

“We’re going to board the helicopter and get in closer, using some of our tech and the Defense Force artillery, we’ll be whittling down the, what did you call it? A kraken?.” Koleda said, summarizing their battle plan. Ben nodded along.

“Got it,” Belle said. Hopping down from Koleda’s arm, Belle took the nearest window seat in order to survey the battlefield.

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Jumping from boat to boat, the Hollow Knights soars across the sea like a green blur. His target clear, the Kraken escaped him once after being dealt a big blow, but this time he will finish the job. Observing his potential footholds, the Knight jumped towards the nearest speed boat, rocking it in the process. Those on board were shocked as they screamed in fright at the sight of another Ethereal. The two officers on board yelled out orders for the civilians to get behind them as they drew their weapons, ready to attack. Not giving a glance of acknowledgement, he scanned the battlefield for future footings and anything that can be used as a weapon. However, he was interrupted as a high speed projectile struck the side of his head, cracking his faceplate. The blow sent him flying off the boat and with a flip, he dove into the water like an Olympic swimmer before climbing on top of the nearest debris.

Acknowledging the strength of the individual who dealt him the blow, the knight turned towards the ship he was just on. Unexpectedly he came face to face with a much smaller girl with green twin tails, her electric staff in hand. Besides her, her partner aimed her pistol right at him. The familiar feeling of ether energy wetting his appetite as he eyed the gun.

“Careful captain Zhu, this one is much more agile and durable than any we’ve faced before.” The green girl said.

“I don’t doubt it, it has to be really sturdy to take on one of your hits like that Qingyi” Zhu yuan said. Getting an idea from that attack the knight spotted a suitable weapon to engage in battle with. Using his superb physical strength, he leaped back towards the ship. His sudden movements towards them caused the two officers to react in kind. Using both hands Zhu yuan unleashed a flurry of bullets towards the flying knight. Many of the bullets missed their mark at first, but a few managed to graze the knight as he grew closer, sparks flying off of his armor. Before the knight could get in range of the ship, Zhu yuan pulled a specialized barrel off of her belt and attached it to the muzzle of her gun’s barrel and with a slightly longer charge time, she unleashed a powerful blast of etheric towards the knight causing an explosion upon contact. As the knight was momentarily blinded by the light and smoke from the explosion, Qingyi appeared out of thin air as she used the earlier attack to mask her jump, allowing her to close the distance. Using her insane strength, she brought down her staff with the force of a thunderstrike on the knight. Before her attack could land however, the knight swiftly grabbed the staff toward the tip using one hand and with the other he grabbed and locked Qingyi’s hands in place.

Switching their positions, he forced Qingyi below him before planting the soles of his feet on her abdomen. The officer's eyes widened in shock as she anticipated his next course of action. Bending his knees till they nearly touched qingyi’s chest, the knight kicked off of her like a stepping stone , sending her flying back into the boat with him propelled over the boat. Hurling towards the ship, Qingyi crashed through the boat’s deck causing Zhu yuan to have an unstable shot. With a grunt Zhu yuan canceled her shot in favor of checking in on her partner.

“Qingyi! Are you alright?” Zhu yuan yelled in worry. A low groan was the only response she received as her mechanical friend climbed her way back onto the deck. Her limbs glitching out slightly with sparks escaping the cracks.

“Captain, I may need to put in sick leave till I get repaired,” Qingyi joked. Using her staff as support she then began to limp towards the edge of the ship in order to regain vision on the knight’s position. “That Ethereal is far more intelligent than an ordinary one and I don’t think muscle memory is the only thing it's got going for it.” Observing the Knight get further and further away, she reaches into her back pocket and pulls out a ziplock bag with a black spike inside. Holding up the spike in the direction of the Ethereal, it began to glow its vibrant purple hue before gradually turning green. “Oh-ho, that’s new. But it looks like we have a match, dear captain.”

Walking up to the robots side, Zhu Yuan stared off into the distance as well. “So that’s the one that saved the civilians huh? The mysterious Hollow Knight?”

Humming in response Qingyi struck her signature pose before responding out loud. “Perhaps, my analysis shows that it is significantly different from the person in the video. But they do strike a resemblance, perhaps it’s a thinking Ethereal that has undergone mutation?”

“I’m sure Miyabi and H.A.N.D would love to get their hands on it, but if it poses a threat to the civilians, we’ll have to put it down fast.” Zhu yuan said as she holstered her pistol. Gazing up to the other Ethereal on the scene she checked her equipment for sufficient ammo. “We’ve received our orders, rescue all civilians before engaging the Ethereal dubbed the Kraken.”

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Continuing his observation of the battlefield the Knight decided to take a page out of Qingyi’s book by using a long ranged melee weapon to match her freakish strength. Jumping from boats and debris, the Ethereal finally landed on a broken sailboat. Reaching his goal, he climbed on top of the roof of the sailboat and walked towards the sail. Placing his hand around the base of the sail, he began to apply force that bent the metal inwards. Shaking the pole side to side, he used gravity to his advantage and snapped the sail off of the boat. Tearing off the sailcloth, he then gave it a test swing, the force of the swing causing a whipping sound in the process. Admiring his newfound weapon, he then turned his sights on the Kraken as its giant tentacle reached for a rescue vessel trying to escape the beast’s range. Before the Kraken could reach however, gunfire broke out as attack helicopters and planes began berating the Kraken with a barrage of bullets. Recoiling in annoyance, the Kraken brought its tentacles up in order to swat the aircrafts out of the sky. It’s efforts were fruitless however as each aircraft either kept a safe distance or expertly dodged each incoming attack with a series of dives and evasive maneuvers.

Seeing that the Kraken was distracted, the Knight made his way towards the action. As he approached the main body of the Kraken, he deliberated the best way to deal any damage. Reminiscing it’s fight earlier, he realized that the only way to deal any real damage is to either strike the soft flesh underneath the armor plating or to strike it from underneath as it’s entire underside is vulnerable. Striking from below would be difficult as they were now in the Kraken’s natural environment, not to mention the force he’ll be able to generate would be drastically reduced underwater. Attacking above is not ideal as the armor plating would turn it into an impenetrable fortress. The knight’s thoughts were interrupted as a fighter jet launched a missile that narrowly avoided all of the kraken’s tentacles and struck it in its eye. The attack caused the Kraken to reel back in pain, its armor plating giving way, exposing its soft flesh for a few seconds before closing back up. Forming an idea, the Knight burst forth at great speeds, his makeshift polearm lagging behind. Using the Kraken’s very tentacles as footholds, he leaped towards the Kraken’s body and ran along its surface, his goal within sight. Wrapping his arms around the pole, he then squeezed onto it hard enough to dent the metal pole. Using his monstrous strength he then swung the pole into the visor-like eye of the Kraken and like a rocket, it seemed as if it exploded on impact as a satisfying shattering sound rang out.

Roaring in pain, the Kraken flailed its tentacles all around as it tried to find the source of its pain. Dodging the tentacles that struck itself near his location, the Knight used this opportunity to climb up higher on the Kraken’s body. Positioning himself above his head, he now waited for an opening. With its unpredictable movements the Kraken wreaked havoc on its surroundings, as a result large waves pushed back all civilians and floating objects. However, the knight’s plan went according to plan as the kraken’s armor-like plating opened up just long enough for the knight to impale the Kraken with his makeshift weapon. Working overtime, the Knight did his best to nail the pole deeper and deeper into its flesh before a tentacle wrapped itself around his body. Raising the knight into the air, the Kraken slammed him down into the water; the force of the impact was comparable to that of smashing him on solid ground. Momentarily stunned as he floated on top of the water, he was caught off guard as the Kraken was not through with him just yet as it swung its mighty tentacle right down him and like a guillotine it cut right through the water dealing heavy damage to him.

The next moment the Kraken began to search for its Etheric revival as it spread out its limbs in order to search for the Knights body, ready to finish him off. Its search however was much more difficult as it anticipated with its eye smashed like stained glass. Relying on touch alone, the Kraken did not have the senses necessary to anticipate another attack from above as the Defense Force continued to bombard the Kraken with heavy artillery. With the two attacks on the Kraken dealing moderate damage, Public Security took this opportunity to evacuate as many civilians as they could until they found no more. Once most vessels cleared out, Zhu Yuan who was leading the rescue operation mumbled words into her radio. Then began the bombings, with a greenlight from higher up, the Defense Force immediately sprung into action as they switched from regular rounds to armor piercing rounds and stronger explosives.

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Earlier on a capital ship, soldier’s ran about the ship as they readied for battle. Giant search light’s equipped to the warship greatly illuminated the seas with many scouts taking advantage of the lights to radio in Pub Sec of any survivors. Up in the helm of the ship, multiple individuals watched the events unfold from up high. So far the operation was going smoothly with everyone doing their part.

Impressed, Commander Roland complemented the Battalion Commander the only way a military man should. “Commander Drake, you run a tight ship here. You have some fine men working under you,” Roland said. Despite the compliment he never gave a smile. Instead he offered a nod of acknowledgment.

Chuckling slightly, the much more expressive Commander accepted the compliment by returning another. “Ha! That I do Commander Roland. I wouldn’t want to work with any other crew in New Eridu, no I won’t! But…,” Drake said as he leaned in closer to Roland. Gesturing to Dr.Ray and Ophelia, Drake wiggled his brows knowingly, “I’m not the only one with fine men under him now aren’t I?” Drake chuckled. Slightly glowing up in embarrassment, Roland coughed into his hand, trying his best to stay professional.

Making sure that no one else heard them, Roland leaned in to give a whisper, “I must ask you to keep your jokes to yourself. As a commanding officer it is heresy that I use my position to take advantage of my subordinates.” As Roland finished his declaration, he marched forwards his companions leaving Drake to chuckle as he lagged behind.

As Ray and Ophelia were discussing their plan of attack, Ray noticed Roland approaching and decided to include him in on their conversation. “Ah if it isn’t the stud of the seas. Enjoy your little guy talk hmm?” Ray said with a smile causing Roland to look away in shame with Drake laughing and slapping his back.

Walking up to the group, Ray’s assistant handed Ophelia the newest report their team gathered from the hollow. Grabbing the report, Ophelia scanned the paperwork, her eyes narrowing the longer she read. Looking up with a serious face, she summarized the report for the three before her. “It’s time to get serious everyone, according to the researchers' findings, the ether density in the sea is much higher than what is possible for any body of water considering the length of time since the hollow’s formation. It is suspected that there is something in the water that shouldn’t be there, so with that being said. They decided to take a direct approach and utilized a remote controlled submarine equipped with an ether resistant camera. After reaching the sea bed, they used the built-in ether measurement device to find where ether was most concentrated, before they could reach the source however, they reported that the submarine was taken out by an unknown creature.”

A moment of silence followed as the three allies exchanged glances with Commander Drake being the only one breaking the silence. Showing them why he is a battalion commander of this vessel, “so, that must be it then? The Ethereal that escaped Hollow Zero?” Drake asked. Not a moment later, Drake walked over to his command terminal and gave out the order to prepare for battle causing the ship to come alive like an angry beehive.

Hoping for the best, Roland tried to remain calm. “Commander, I'd advise you to tread carefully. This Ethereal is something we’ve never seen before, it may very well be the same beast that destroyed one of the Shiyu Pillars. If that is the case, it would mean this enemy is one that can threaten the very existence of New Eridu.” His warnings only received a chuckle from the other commander.

Taking the clipboard from Ophelia, Ray flipped to the last page holding the ether readings. Carefully examining each one, she quickly came to a conclusion as to what laid ahead. “Roland, these readings. They’re the same ones from last week-” before the scientist could finish her sentence however, the ship rocked violently as a mass of light blinded them through the window. Shielding their eyes from the sudden change in scenery, they did their best to see what was happening outside. Slowly as their eyes adjusted to the change in light, they approached the window standing side by side in order to get a good look at the full picture. Standing before them was an unbelievable sight as an gargantuan armored octopus emerged from the sea. Staring in disbelief Ray’s scientific mind was rocked as the never before seen Ethereal defied all logics of what humanity has known about Ethereals since the inception of hollow research.

With wide eyes Roland’s facade faltered ever so slightly. “Never have I ever in my long line of service, have I witnessed such a monster.” Roland the ever vigilant soldier didn’t allow himself to be shocked for too long as he now had the opportunity to redeem himself from his earlier failure. “Commander Drake, I’m giving the order for some of my men to engage with the Ethereal via airstrikes, we should learn about what this Ethereal is capable of before any drastic measures. Not to mention we’re still in the middle of rescue efforts, so we should buy Pub Sec some time to evacuate the civilians.”

With clear instructions and justifiable intent, Drake nodded along as he issued orders to his crew. Speaking into the radio once more, he gave out the order to prepare the pilots for takeoff. Immediately a crew got down towards the plane fueling it, checking its ammo and making sure the equipment is properly calibrated. Soon the pilots shot off into the air, hovering just slightly away from the Kraken. In the pilot’s earpiece, Ray’s voice was the one to give them their orders. In her lazy, but professional voice she greeted the pilots casually. “Alright boys, head researcher, Dr.Ray here. I’ll be giving you your first orders in place of Commander Drake. Right now we don’t want to do anything Risky. Your orders are to get in close, report the characteristics of the Ethereal such as any the number of limbs, weak points, chinks in it’s armor or any special organs that would allow it to do something special like shoot lasers or anything unusual you think is worth reporting. Remember, information is power, so give us as much of it as you can.”

Ignoring her orders, one of the pilots, an arrogant veteran, responded with a scoff. “You want us in the air, but you don’t want us to attack? And lasers? Seriously? Listen here Ray or whatever, why don’t you go back to your calculators and graphs while the professionals take care of this Ethereal before anyone gets hurt yeah? You know what they say right? The bigger they are, the harder they fall.” The soldier said as he ended his declaration with a laugh.

Humming in amusement, Ray did not falter in the slightest as she knew exactly how to deal with cocky individuals. Pulling out her trump card, she then went in for the kill, quickly making sure that the soldiers never wanted to land his jet again. “Is that so? Well I guess it can’t be helped. Did you hear all that Commander Roland? Battalion Commander Drake? It seems this little researcher needs to go back to messing around with her numbers in some lonely corner,” Ray woefully said in an overexaggerated tone. The mentioning of the two highest ranking officers on duty sent a chill down the pilot’s spine as his face morphed into one of horror. On the other end of the line, his fellow pilot laughed slightly as he gave his friend a hand gesture for good luck before diving towards the Ethereal.

Back in the helm of the ship, Roland walked up beside Drake. “Do you mind if I join you on the radio Commander?” Roland said as he stared intensely at the jet with the arrogant pilot.

With a smirk, Drake gestured to another radio mic right besides him. “By all means Commander Roland, my castle is your castle. Make yourself at home.” Drake responded. Exchanging glances and a smirk, the two commanders nodded as they began to scare the daylights out of the pilot. “Well son, now you have our attention. What’s this I hear about you disrespecting a guest of ours?” Drake said, his voice joyful yet unnerving.

Now sweating profusely, the pilot stuttered heavily as he knew he royally screwed up in front of his bosses. “Uh-I, I thought that Dr.Ray was not of high enough clearance to issue orders sir! I was expecting to be receiving direct orders from a Commander sir!” The pilot said in a panic, he began to descend towards the large Ethereal alongside another pilot in order to remedy the situation.

For once Roland’s lips curled into a smile, a chuckle escaping his lips, startling those around him, including the pilot. “A soldier knows when to stop talking, especially when they know they’re already dead.” Roland said coldly, quickly silencing the pilot. Croaking his next set of words, Roland ensured that Ray’s orders were to be followed by all that were listening. “Good, now, let’s let the Ether experts do their jobs by doing our jobs. Understand?”

Rather than receiving a “yes sir” in response, the pilots then began to report on the characteristics of the Ethereal. Walking back towards the two commanders, Ray joked around with her colleague as she placed her hand on his shoulder. “Wow Roland, didn’t realize you can be scary when you want to be. Looks like I'm going to have a show to watch tonight when they land hm? Thanks to you, the data we’re receiving is coming in steadily.” Returning the researcher’s comment, Roland only nodded.

Just then a radio telephone operator interrupted their moment. “This just in, we’re receiving a call from Obol Squad, they wish to speak with you ma’am.” the operator said.

Ray, now taking the lead with the comms, put on an extra headset. “This is Dr.Ray speaking, what do you got for me?”

On the other end of the line, a spicy gremlin spoke up. “Koleda Belobog here, we’ve recovered our allies from the Coastal Reef Island, they have some news regarding that massive Ethereal in the middle of the water.” Koleda said as she handed Ben the radio.

Nervously, Ben began to speak into the radio, recalling as much detail as he could. “Yes hello? Do you read me?”

“I have you, to whom am I speaking too?” Ray responded. Gesturing to put the call on speaker, she had her team ready to jot down ideas to form a counter strategy.

“Yes, my name is Ben, Ben Bigger. I work at Belobog Industries as an accountant. Me and a coworker were in the middle of a fishing competition with the Fishing Association when the hollow formed around us and that Ethereal we dubbed “The Kraken” appeared.”

“Kraken huh? Good name, we’ll use that one if you don’t mind. What else can you tell us?” Ray said.

“Well, as you can imagine by its size, it’s extremely powerful. Each swing of its tentacles are capable of shattering even rock. Not to mention its body is heavily armored with metal-like plating. The tips of four of its tentacles in its front are also armored, allowing it to puncture objects like harpoon and recently it displayed an incredible regenerative ability after two of its tentacles were torn off. Not to mention that it has the ability to control its glowing body by turning on and off the lights. That being said, this is one tough Ethereal, it did sustain some damage earlier, but it was from underneath.” Ben explained.

Mulling over the information, Ray’s team began working together with the fleet, simulating attack patterns capable of harming the Kraken. As Ray observed the Kraken, it began to pick up a rescue cruiser. With haste, Ray grabbed her headset as she issued out new orders to the pilots, “Change of plans, it’s going after the civilians, engage with the Kraken, draw its attention towards the skies and do not. I repeat, do not use any heavy artillery!”

“Yes ma’am” The pilots said as they began to fire a barrage of bullets towards the Kraken. Dropping the ship in hand, it crashed into the sea before speeding off as soon as its crew stabilized. Now swatting into the air, the Kraken came dangerously close to destroying a few jet’s, but the pilot’s experience won in the end with each strike missing its mark. “Ma’am the glowing visor on the base of its head, if it’s anything like an actual octopus, it could be a weak point. One hard strike to its eye area and the whole thing will go down. No civilians in sight, permission to fire a missile.”

Thinking about the pilot’s initiative and insight, Ray recalled the characteristics of all known Ethereals and taking their biology into consideration, this idea is plausible. Ultimately, hypotheses need to be tested in order to be deemed true, so with that being said. “Alright, you have permission to use heavy fire. Use your missile sparingly and aim at its visor.” With a “yes ma’am” the pilot then dove towards the water before pulling up just right to glide alongside the surface. Using the dark sea as camouflage, the jet fighter raced towards the Kraken like a bullet. As it got within striking range, the jet fighter fired off a single missile that whizzed through a forest of tentacles before striking the Kraken dead center in its visor like eyes causing it to recoil slightly. Pulling up and narrowly colliding with a stray limb, the pilot safely got out of the Kraken’s attack range before hovering over the beast.

“Woohoo! Yeah it really felt that one!” The pilot said in joy as his assumption was correct. Not only did he manage to land a critical blow, but he also gave the research team valuable information about the anatomy of the Kraken.

Acknowledging the soldier’s efforts, Ray now had a good idea on how to counter the Ethereal. “Good work Angel, your hunch was right on the money. We’re getting word that Pub Sec is about to finish up on their end. All birds get ready to strike, switch over to heavy artillery and aim for its visor-” her statement interrupted as another pilot chimed in.

“Angel to Carrier. We’ve got movement on the water. I can’t tell what it is, it looks to be some kind of human shaped Ethereal. It’s making its way towards the Kraken now with what looks like a metal pole in hand, over.” The pilot said.

Gazing out the window towards the water the four major officers watched as there was in fact a person jumping from boat to boat before expertly leaping into the air and using the Kraken’s very tentacle as a foothold. In shock, Ophelia was the first to break the silence. “Who is that? Is that a soldier?”

Shaking their heads the two commanders disagreed with that statement. Speaking up, Drake shut down Ophelia’s statement. “A soldier belonging to either team is impossible. Just look at that thing-” Drake said as he pointed at the person ricocheted off of another tentacle before landing on the kraken. “Unless we have a hidden talent in the Defense Force or if they were wearing some high tech armor, it’ll be impossible to replicate its movements. It may be possible for a Void Hunter, but we haven’t received any word of one joining in on our operation.”

Another researcher ran up to Ray, handing her a new sheet of papers. “Dr, we just received new results. The ether readings for the Ethereal dubbed, the Kraken reveals that it has an even higher concentration of ether than even Nineveh. Truthfully, as we were taking the readings, it continued to grow, even now we are keeping an eye out on the measurements and it’s still growing! This reading here on the first page is just what we put down for right now. But besides that, look! On the bottom right side of the page there’s another ether signature, one that-” the researcher rambled before Ray finished her sentence.

“That appeared in the Sixth Street Hollow. Yes I can see that. That means we have two mysterious Ethereals on our hands now-” Ray said as she sighed in exhaustion. “Alright someone get me a coffee. Angels, keep your eyes on both Ethereals. Let’s see what it wants for now.”

With the two members of Obol Squad on hold, unexpectedly a voice interrupted their professional call. “Oh! We can see him from here. That Hollow Knight really does have some crazy moves huh?” The voice said.

Scolding him harshly, Koleda yelled into the man’s ear. “Anton you idiot! We need to be respectful in front of the Defense Force! Grace, how’s the weapon coming along?”

The sound of hammering and nuts turning could be heard in the background as Grace spoke up, “It’s coming along nicely Sweet Pea! Just a few more minutes and I'll have this baby ready to light up the sea even more than the Kraken.”

Exploding in her seat, Koleda then began to scold Grace. “Wha-how-No! You can’t just say that while we were on the line! What if they take you away to make weapons for them? Then what would we do without our head engineer?”

Laughing in delight, Grace then teased Koleda, “Awww, Sweet Pea, you do care!”

Ignoring their comedy routine, Ray began to mumble her line of thought. “Hollow Knight? The one from that video? An emergence of a hollow…is it related to his presence? And why is it here exactly? Is it a minion? No, it looks too agitated to be a henchman, could this be a turf war? Or…is it them?”

As if to confirm her last line of thought, the Knight wound back its pole before swinging it into the Kraken’s eye, prying from it a much greater reaction. Confused as to why the Knight did such a thing, everyone was shocked to see the Kraken’s head grow and pulse for a few seconds. With exposed flesh hidden away by its armor, the Knight then drove its weapon into the kraken’s vulnerable flesh, dealing the most damage to the enemy within seconds. Seeing the knight at work, the Defense Force team looked towards one another with a new plan in mind.

“I see we have the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.” Roland said as he stroked his chin.

Nodding along, Ray wished she could personally study the Hollow Knight some more, but realized that the best course of action is to get rid of an unknown variable so that she can return to her original work. Yet, they may as well use the two powerhouse’s disdain for each other to their advantage. “Alright how about we fight fire with fire on this one?” Ray said.

Pondering the idea for a moment, Roland could see the advantage at using every tool at their disposal. Not to mention, it can save lives in the event of any unexpected event. “Alright, Angel’s you have your orders. Assist the Knight-like individual in taking down the Kraken. Afterwards, bring him in for questioning.” Roland ordered as he looked down on the battlefield. Soon the flashes of light and the sound of explosions erupted shortly after, a small smile finding its way onto his face.

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Flying through the skies in the safety of the Defense Force’s military helicopter, Belle and the Belobog crew watched on as they witnessed all of the events unfold. Impressed with seeing New Eridu’s protectors in action, their spirits were lifted to new heights, their victory all but assured.

Flexing his muscles for no reason, Anton bounced in his seat as he reminisced the actions of the Hollow Knight. “Holy heck did you guys see that? The way it briefly fought with the robot chick and copied her fighting style? Bro’s learning by the second!” Anton said before clinging back on the window. The other passengers however were more conflicted by what they witnessed. Returning to New Eridu’s hottest topic, each person gave their own ideas as to the mysterious identity of

“Alright, surely that’s a guy in there. There is absolutely no way an Ethereal can learn to scavenge for a weapon. That’s human levels of intelligence it just displayed.” Koleda said as she placed her hammer’s head down into a strange looking box. Afterwards, the box morphed itself around her hammer causing the head to be extra bulky. Smiling with satisfaction, she held her hammer in her hands, tracing its handle.

Originally planning on not joining the conversation, Soldier 11 who was sitting in the corner with her arms crossed and eyes closed, decided to join in on the conversation in order to correct the group. “Negative civilians. That is without a doubt an Ethereal. My time in the Defense Force has put me up against a variety of foes, the characteristics, the strengths and of course the appearance of an Ethereal can only mean it is an Ethereal. It is said that those who were recently corrupted are capable of retaining slight memories of their lives. Whether it is the name of someone important to them or muscle memories, it does not matter. Ethereals are the enemy of mankind-” opening her eyes she looked over to the group “and as such, should be slain.” Her words cold, but factual. In the corner of the copter, Belle sat there restless. Not liking the idea that everyone here was potentially an enemy of her brother. Belle sat there in silence, praying that Wise was just lost somewhere else.

Lifting her head from the bulky device before her, Grace gushed at her newest creation. “Whoo, finally done! Oh you are going to do great for your first test run!” Grace said as she threw her arms on top of the engine looking machine. Much to Koleda’s dismay.

Quickly pulling the mechanic off of the machine, Koleda scolded Grace harshly. “You idiot! Are you trying to kill us all? We don’t want you setting it off before we start fighting.” Noticing Koleda’s urgent reaction, Belle’s interest was picked as she hopped down from her seat and waddled towards the machine.

Poking it with her little arms Belle innocently asked, “Say Grace, what exactly did you build anyways?” While being restrained in Koleda’s grip, Grace’s eyes lit up as she began to explain a bunch of mechanical gibberish in order to explain the inner workings of the machine. Before she could get ahead of herself however, Anton intervened in answering the question.

“It’s a thunder nuke basically.” Anton said with a smile. What followed was a dead silence from everyone else as they now realized they were carrying volatile cargo that could take them all out with the slightest turbulence. The copter pilot even whipped his head back in disbelief before regaining his composure. Belle shot back and crashed into the nearest wall, sweat somehow dripping down Eos’s body.

“Didn’t we tell you proxy?” Koleda started. “In exchange for getting us an in with the Defense Force, they personally commissioned us to help them in the event of a major threat. When we informed Commander Roland of the Kraken, he remembered seeing Grace with your brother at Scott Outpost. So, we built them a weapon, they let us personally come and get Ben and Thomas. Win, win.”

Just then, gunfire erupted on the battlefield followed by a series of consecutive explosions. Standing up from her seat, Soldier 11 walked towards the door before sliding it open. “Belebog Industry, Proxy. Mission objective, slay the Ethereal known as the Kraken. Followup mission of much lesser priority. Capture the Hollow Knight in order to ascertain its true identity.”

Slapping her baby, Grace explained her part of the plan as she slung a huge weapon over her shoulders. “Anton and Koleda will help Soldier 11 with fighting the Kraken down there. While I stay up here and use this grenade launcher courtesy of the boys at Scott Outpost to fire off my electric grenades to chip away at the Kraken, then once we I get the signal-” Grace slapped a hand on the electric nuke causing everyone to flinch, “I’ll drop this baby onto that mean Ethereal and we all watch as it becomes grilled octopus.” Puffing out her chest, Grace huffed with pride at her baby’s future achievements.

With her ever so stoic expression, Soldier 11 resumed command of the operation. “Ahem, well if you’re all done chatting. Let’s get to work shall we?” She said with a turn. Kneeling down, Soldier 11 scanned the battlefield for a suitable place to land and with a flex of her calves, she launched herself off of the helicopter at breakneck speeds. The Belobog crew expecting parachutes ran towards the door out of concern for the soldier just in time to witness her safely land on a still intact sail before rolling down towards the base and flipping onto the deck with the grace of a cat.

“Whoa, she’s pretty badass.” Belle mumbled out. The rest nodded along. Glancing at one another, Anton and Koleda exchanged a smug smirk before following Soldier 11’s style and jumped out of the copter without any safety equipment much to everyone’s shock.

Reaching out towards the falling duo, Grace and Ben erupted in screams. “Sweet Pea!” “President!” They screamed.

Looking up at the fiasco, Soldier 11 was absolutely baffled that civilians would try to replicate a stunt without any formal training. Her mouth would continue to stay agape afterwards as she witnessed the pair create their own landing strategies on the fly. The taller of the two, Anton rather than using the terrain to cushion his fall, instead activated his drill and with an immensely powerful punch, he destroyed any wreckage below him. Resulting in him plunging right through and into the water. What an incredibly savage method the Soldier thought. He could have just jumped into the water in the first place. Although he did reduce the risk of landing on anything that could severely harm him by facing his potential footing head on. So I guess it’s acceptable? Turning her attention to the shorter of the two, what she wasn’t expecting was that the Belobog girl happened to borrow a riot shield as she held it in one hand and her hammer in the other. There’s no way that shield can absorb the brunt of the landing or did she perhaps think that she can use it to glide? Truly a foolish thought process, as expected of a child. Getting ready to parkour across the wreckages in order to save the redhead, Soldier 11 held off for a moment as Koleda placed her shield beneath her feet. She really is foolish. Soldier 11 thought as she shook her head. Waiting for the last second Koleda then twisted her body and swung her hammer into the shield, placing her feet onto the neck of the hammer, she then activated a switch that caused a small explosion, sending the shield flying towards the ground, but at the same time generating enough force to cancel out the force of her fall for a moment. This strategy allowed her to choose where she gets to fall and negate any chance of splatting on the ground. Hmm, quite ingenious actually. Maybe these guys aren’t too bad after all, as expected of Spicy Cat Lover’s contacts. She mused. Jogging up to the redhead Soldier 11 extended her hand out of respect, a rare spectacle for anyone within the Defense Force. For a few seconds Koleda stared at the girl's hand before wordlessly grabbing onto it with an iron grip. The two exchanged a respectful gaze until Anton, whilst soaking wet, eventually made his way to the two girls. Breaking off from their handshake, Koleda raised her hand up towards Anton who smirked and slapped it with his own. “President! That was so cool! We need to do things like that more often!” Anton gushed.

Crossing her arms and smiling, Koleda didn’t respond in order to keep the image of a serious president. But deep down inside she knew she wanted to do it again.

“Alright the plan is simple, we go in and dish out as much damage as possible once our cover fire exposes its weakness then we retreat so that the mechanic can activate her weapon. Any questions?” Soldier 11 asked.

Raising her hand like a student Koleda wanted to make sure she was on the same page. “Yeah, how exactly do we get close? I mean there isn’t any solid ground for us to run on.” She responded.

Without even turning around, Soldier 11 pointed her blade towards the Kraken. “What are you talking about? Our footholds are right there.”

Looking behind the soldier, the two could only see the Krkane itself wriggling about, any signs of a foothold nonexistent within a few meters of the beast. That was till they remembered what the knight did earlier. “Wait, you don’t mean?-“ Koleda said before Soldier 11 cut her off.

“Yes.” Responded simply.

Sighing at the absurdity of the plan, Koleda couldn’t do anything, but accept the plan.

“No more questions then? Then let’s roll.” Soldier 11 said as she turned around. Not waiting for a response she then began to leap into action, jumping from one debris to another with ease. Leaving the construction duo in her dust, she made for the nearest tentacle in her sight. “Approaching target. Will engage in 7 seconds. Trigger, I'm sure you have eyes on me?” She said as she jumped on top of a wrecked boat.

With coms coming alive, a beautiful voice spoke in Soldier 11’s ears. “Affirmative, I'll be your eyes in the sky. You have about one klick till the target destination, I can see that the path you’ve chosen will have many winds and turns.” Trigger said as she traced Soldier 11’s outline through her scope. Pulling away from her scope, she then turned her attention a short distance away as a strong ether reading caught her attention. “Oh? And that must be the Knight. Hmm, pretty dense ether that one has.”

“Roger, making contact now.” Soldier 11 said as she leapt off of the boat and landed on a writhing tentacle. Running down the length of the tentacle, she flipped a switch on her back and freed her blade from its sheath. As her blade escaped its confinement, it exploded in a blaze of glory, coating the edge with a fiery aura. Deciding to get in as much damage as she can, the soldier began to hack at the ground before her as she ran towards the main body. Each strike sizzled as it sliced through malleable flesh, each strike forcing a reaction out of the Ethereal. The Kraken didn’t have the chance to turn its attention towards the soldier however as it would be pelted all over by a rain of missiles and gunfire courtesy of the air force. Enraged, the Kraken continued to sweep the skies with its tentacles only to strike at air. Enraged, the Kraken roared and began to use its tentacles as a shield to block the incoming projectiles. With each hit the Kraken’s tentacle was blown away chunk by chunk. Eventually under such high firepower the loose flesh would cause the tentacles to tear off under its own weight before the damaged wound would glow and regenerate into a new limb.

With static erupting in her ear, Soldier 11 was given an update by Trigger as the war raged on. “Soldier 11, you are about halfway from the target, the road ahead would be submerged so unless you plan on swimming. See if you can find an alternative path.”

“Roger,” Soldier 11 responded. Using her quick thinking, she brought her sword up above her head and with a double grip she impaled her blade into the tentacle, sparking a larger reaction from the Kraken. As the Ethereal lashed about, it retracted and whipped its tentacles into the air, sending the soldier flying towards her target. From right behind her, an explosion caught her attention as it was dangerously close to her location. With no other options as she was being propelled midair, the soldier turned her head to see where the explosion originated from only to find Koleda spinning out of control behind her. I see, she used her hammer’s explosives to propel herself like before Ms.Belobog keeps on surprising She thought.

All of a sudden Trigger’s frantic voice interrupts her train of thought.
“Soldier 11, brace for impact!” Turning back towards her target, she felt a chill run down her spine as the Kraken had turned its sights on her and Koleda. With a limb coming straight at them and Koleda spinning out of control, Soldier 11 spun around in the air to change her trajectory ever so slightly in order to grab Koleda and using her own body, she readied herself to take the hit. Before the attack could register however, large arms wrapped themselves around the two girls tightly causing the two to look up. There in their time of peril was the Hollow Knight who appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

Shifting his hold on the girls, he moved the two onto his right arm and with a flex of his muscles, he chucked them towards the Kraken before taking the hit meant for them and crashing into the water. As the two girls closed the distance, Soldier 11 elegantly tucked into a roll before standing up casually. Koleda on the other hand skid across the Kraken’s body. With a huff, Koleda dusted herself off before groaning out of anger. “I can’t believe he just threw us like that!” Koleda screamed. “When I get my hands on him, I'll smash his skull in!”

Placing a hand on the young redhead, Soldier 11 snapped her out of her temper tantrum. “Not yet, the Hollow Knight actually saved us a bunch of time and even saved our lives. As much as I want to even the score, we have a job to do.” Soldier 11 explained.

Static erupted in their earpieces before the voice of Roland came through. “Soldier 11, Ms.Belobog. We have visuals on you two. Listen up, after observing the Hollow Knight’s attack plan. We’ve decided to replicate his actions using the two of you as key figures to land a critical hit. With that being said, Ms.Belobog, we need you to make your way towards the Kraken’s eyes where you will then have to land heavy hits to its eyes. This will cause the Ethereal to open up its armor where soldier 11 will then deal a significant blow to its soft flesh. At the same time, the Angels are ordered to fire on the opposite side of your location. If our calculations are right, we can blow away the armor of the Ethereal in one go. Do not fail the operation, otherwise we’ll be in it for the long run.” Roland explained.

Just in another voice joined the conversation. Revealing themselves to be the voice of one of the jet fighters, they explained their situation. “Commander, we are running low on ammunition, as of right now we do not have the firepower to continue with the plan. Permission to temporarily withdraw sir!”

With a frustrated sigh, Roland mumbled out some curses before regaining his composure. “Of all the luck, alright. Angel’s prepare to return to the carrier, but be prepared. This is a time sensitive operation with multiple lives on the line.”

“Yes sir!.” Multiple voices said through the radio coms. All of the flying jets once hovering around the Ethereal then began to retreat towards the carrier. As they no longer occupied the Kraken’s attention with their firepower, the Kraken no longer had to focus on defense. So with its huge body, it began to submerge itself below the waves in order to follow the jets, but not before grabbing a nearby boat and hurling it towards the carrier. The projectile crashed right into the command center causing everyone to recoil.

“Intelligent…” Ray mumbled as she picked herself off the ground.

“Oh crap we’re going under! What do we do?” Koleda screamed. Looking around, Soldier 11 tried her best to scan for any opening, any way to latch onto the Kraken without alerting it so that they don’t lose their valuable position. Just as the Kraken lost its glow and all the light that remained were the lights coming from the ships, a glistening object reflected in the darkness. Focusing on the object, Soldier 11 just made out the pole that the Hollow Knight jammed into the Kraken in their earlier exchange. Not wasting this opportunity, Soldier 11 pointed out her intent.

“We have to get to the pole, hurry!” She ordered as she put her hands together. Realizing her intent, Koleda ran towards the soldier and leapt into her arm before using it to boost her jump onto a higher part of the Kraken’s rigid body. After gripping onto the edge of the open metal plating, Koleda extended her hammer down towards Soldier 11 who grabbed onto it after a jump. Easily lifting the soldier to her level, the two then hung on for dear life before the Kraken laid horizontal, ready to move.

As the Kraken began to swim towards the carrier, a voice cried out from behind the two. Turning to see the commotion. Unexpectedly, Anton was climbing onto dear life as he clung to the Kraken’s tentacle as he was continuously submerged under the waves. “Oh come on!” Anton said in between breaths. Not too far off, the Hollow Knight was in a similar position as he latched onto the Kraken as well.

|

On the carrier, the soldiers and researchers panicked as the Kraken made its way towards them. Rushing up to the commander and Ray, the researchers frantically asked, “Commander! Dr.Ray! It’s coming right for us, why don’t we use the electric bomb you prepared to take it out right now?” the scared researcher said. Without even changing her expression, Ray placed a hand on the researcher's shoulders and began walking towards him, causing the researcher to walk backwards before he fell onto a chair.

Looking down into the researcher's eyes, Ray sternly pointed out the obvious “We are in the middle of the sea, water is conductive and it’s heading in our direction. If we launch our trump card now, who knows if it’ll be enough to kill it. And if it doesn’t all of our electronics would be fried, leaving us defenseless. Understand?” Ray said as she shifted her gaze to her team, all nodded under her cold tone and authority. “Good, now let’s put our faith in our soldiers and hired help and wait for the right opportunity to combat this thing.”

Thinking to himself, Drake thought of a rather bold idea in order to combat the Kraken. “Now hold on a minute everyone,” Drake started. Gathering all eyes on him, he relayed his plans. “What if we let the Kraken on board, it looks just big enough to fit on board and it’ll give us a chance to allow our melee fighters a proper foothold.”

Outraged, Roland spoke out against the commander’s plan. “Of all the reckless-,” Roland started as he marched towards the other commander before taking a deep breath. “That’s not all is it?” Roland asked. His question earning a smirk from Commander Drake.

“Right you are my friend, this ship here may not look it, but it is made of top of the line materials that not only block radio waves to prevent any enemies from listening in, but it also happens to be resistant to the elements. Fire, explosives, water and yes even electricity. So, why don’t we lure the Ethereal onto the deck of the ship and detonate that electric bomb you lot have prepared and then-” Drake said as he struck his fist, “Whamo! We finish it off with whatever forces we have left.”

Pondering for a moment, Ophelia then asked a question that completely dismantled Drake’s plan. “Ok, but how do we lure it on top of the deck? For all we know, it could hang onto the ship's sides and pick us off with its long tentacles.”

“Guh!” Drake responded as he clutched his chest in jest. “Hmm you’re right. So how do we lure it onto the deck?” Drake asked.

Rolling her eyes at the stupid question, tiredly Ray helped patch the holes in Drake’s plan. “Ethereals are attracted to ether, so have some of your men leak some ether out on the deck. The Kraken would then sense it and come up to feed. And for the record it's best we detonate the bomb in the water in order to deal as much damage as possible as water is conductive.”

Laughing boisterously, Drake appeared beside Ray to bring her into an one armed hug causing Roland’s eye to twitch ever so slightly. “Hahaha, brilliant as always Dr.Ray! Alright men, you heard the doctor. Bring some of our reserved Ether tanks onto the deck. Oh! And here comes the Angels.” Just as the commander said, the jet fighters landed one by one onto the runway where a team of soldiers quickly and efficiently restocked the jet’s ammunition.

Not a moment later a crash violently shook the carrier as the Kraken had reached its target. Without haste, it began to wrap itself around the carrier, crushing the craft with its strength. As its limbs began to climb the sides of the ship, the pilots jumped into their jets and launched themselves off of the edge and into the sky. Now swarming the carrier, the Angels began to unload their rounds into the Ethereal’s dome.

Patching through the radio, Soldier 11 updated her superiors on the mission status. “Soldier 11 to command, we have successfully infiltrated the Kraken’s perimeter. I am in position now. Awaiting orders.”

“Good job soldier. There has been a change of plans. We will now lure the Ethereal onto the deck using ether. Keep holding out until it’s on board, then go nuts.” Ray said. As she set a video camera to record observation data.

As the ships soldiers rolled out the Ether filled containers, they then began to retreat to a safe distance before firing upon the containers, allowing the ether inside to leak out rapidly. Like a pink glowing fog, the ether began to coat the deck rapidly. In response, the Kraken’s tentacles began to curl around the ship more tightly and with a tug the Kraken just barely climbed high enough that its ruined eye became level with the deck. Its sheer weight was enough to tilt the ship forward, sliding everything that wasn’t bolted down toward it. Eyeing the ether rich material, rather than fully climbing on board, the Kraken then grabbed a few containers and brought it below its body. Presumably towards its mouth or beak.

Urgently, Ophelia pointed out the failure of the plan. “No! It’s not going to get on board at this rate. What do we do?” She yelled.

Trying to be proactive, Drake suggests they fire on the Ethereal from this position before Roland cuts him off. “We can’t attack at this range, it will only enrage the Ethereal and from what we’ve seen of its intelligence, it would most likely sink us in order to have us fight in its element.”

“Then we need to get it so pissed off that it would want to climb on board.” Drake argued back, further enraging Roland

“Did you not listen to a word that was spoken? We cannot, the Ethereal is too intelligent to fall for some provocations from us-” Roland said before a loud roar cut him off. Rather than the distinct song-like roar of the Kraken, this time a more beastly roar rang out as a blur shot forth from the Kraken’s direction like a projectile. Landing on the deck, the figure turned out to be the Hollow Knight as he slightly parted the ether mist before kneeling down in the direction of the Kraken. Unexpectedly, the Hollow Knight’s next action would all but confirm his true identity once and for all to the military as he did something never before seen by any hollow researcher.

Parting his mouth ever so slightly, the Knight then began to rapidly suck the ether in the area. The sight defied all logic as it appeared that the ether seemingly came alive just to converge in the knight’s mouth. The sight shocked everyone on the carrier into silence. “It's absorbing the ether we placed as bait,” Drake said coldly as he now recognized two threats that invaded his vessel.

“It…really is, isn’t it?” Ray mumbled as she was lost in thought. With the knight’s back reflecting in her eyes, Ray was beginning to feel a burning sensation well up in her chest. A passion she had long since forgotten. With an unknown entity before her and its unique abilities on display, the researcher couldn’t help but imagine the countless nights of going over data and testing hypothesis after hypothesis in her future. Developing a new interest in her next research subject, Ray unknowingly licked her lips as she shifted the data recorder to focus on the Hollow Knight rather than the Kraken. The next moment, the spines on his back began to glow a vibrant neon purple, the same color as raw ether. And his eyes now adopted the same glow, his fire-like marks now radiating an ether looking aura around his armored body. After absorbing the ether containers completely; the knight then curled his arms into his chest and threw his head back before firing off a power roar that carried with it condensed ether energy, allowing for the shockwave to be visible to the naked eye. To those who were unfamiliar with the properties of the attack, it looked as if the Hollow Knight was breathing fire onto his enemies. As the ether breath struck the Kraken, it then began to spread and disperse along the Ethereal’s body, scorching it in the process. The Hollow Knight’s attack didn’t last long however as it abruptly stopped his attack.

With a slight intrigued laugh, Ray jotted down some notes. “2.3 seconds for a ranged attack, seemingly more powerful and destructive than an ether ball that Hati are known to produce, but not quite as powerful as I imagined. Could it be out of steam already or?” Ray mumbled along.

Jumping backwards to gain some distance, it was clear to see what the knight’s plan was as the Kraken shrieked angrily before fully climbing onto the ships deck. Having successfully lured the Kraken out of the water the Knight then began to charge straight for the Kraken. Being met with a tentacle crashing down the Knight he then stepped to the side, easily dodging the strike. As the Knight drew closer, the Kraken decided to utilize all of its tentacles for the next attack. Drawing each limb back, it was caught off guard when three individuals made themselves known. Propelling herself right into the line of sight of the Kraken, Koleda swung her mighty hammer down into its visor causing it to flinch and open up its plating. With its weak point exposed, Anton and Soldier 11 made quick work of pummeling the flesh beneath. With every punch Anton allowed his lil bro to drill as deep as it could into the Kraken. And like a professional chef, Soldier 11 filleted the Ethereal with ease. The Kraken thrashed in pain yet the nimble fighters were not thrown off. After closing the distance, the Hollow Knight then leapt beside Soldier 11 startling her.

“You!” Soldier 11 angrily spat out. Readying her blade she began to swing it down like lightning after having witnessed the Knight’s absorption of ether. She was quickly stopped however, as the Knight grabbed her hand holding her blade and dug it deep into the Kraken’s flesh. The blade sizzled upon contact. In response, Soldier 11 threw herself to the side and landed a powerful kick to the side of the Knight’s temple. Yet the attack did not elicit a response. Instead, the Knight let go of her hand before digging his own in between the kraken’s flesh and plating. Using his monstrous strength, he then began to tear the plating straight from the Ethereal before tossing it to the side. He then began to repeat this action all while Soldier 11 watched in shock. If we reduce its defensive capabilities now, then the Defense Force can deal significant damage! She thought.

Soon the Kraken who had had had enough of not being able to deal with its tiny infestation. In response it made its way towards the edge of the carrier, ready to dive back into the water. Before it could, however, the ever so ready captain of the ship issued an order.

“All harpoons fire!” Commander Drake roared out. The next moment a swarm of metal rods impaled the Kraken, many of which bounced off its armor, the ones that didn’t, managed to impale the target preventing the Ethereal from escaping. “Now retract!” Drake ordered. On que the ropes attached to the harpoons then began to retract towards the tower of the ship, pulling the Kraken along. With nowhere left to run and no defenses left, the Kraken then began to divert all of its energy into one final attack. With the glow of its cosmic skin disappearing, the energy then began to converge around the pods on its tentacles causing them to shine like that of a star.

“What on earth is it doing?” Roland asked as he squinted his eyes.

“Whatever it is, we should stop it before it can do anything.” Ophelia said. Looking between her superiors for confirmation, they both exchanged glances before giving the go ahead. With a nod, Ophelia then took control of the mic to warn the combatants. “Attention all soldiers, retreat to a safe distance, the Defense Force will begin bombarding the Ethereal as of right now. I repeat, retreat to a safe distance!”

In response, Soldier 11 diligently escaped towards a latch, allowing her access to the lower levels. Koleda and Anton however were as lucky as they were unfamiliar with the layout of the ship. Instead they attempted to escape to the opposite side of the ship. As they jumped down onto solid ground, they made a dash for it. Unfortunately, the Kraken wasn’t done just yet as it grabbed hold of Koleda from behind, wrapping itself around her torso before reeling her back towards its body. With a gasp Anton skidded to a stop before trying to rescue the small redhead.

“Boss!” Anton roared as he sprinted as hard as he could towards the retreating form of Koleda. With all his might, he did everything in his power to muster up whatever strength he had left to close the distance. However, having tunnel vision would soon be his downfall as he failed to properly take in his surroundings. With a numbing force pressing on his right side, he failed to stop and dodge an incoming tentacle that struck him like a large whip. Caught off guard and with an improper stance, Anton was sent flying off into the distance. The pain from the attack was minuscule compared to the pain of failing his friends. Once more Anton roared out to Koleda as he outstretched his hand in vain.

Now in the hands of her enemy, Koleda experienced first hand the strength of the Kraken as it crushed her ribs. A scream escaped from her as her bones cracked under the pressure. With a huff, she lifted her hammer above her head. “Let! Go for me, you stupid squid!” Koleda said as she struck the tentacle, upon impact an explosion sent a slight shockwave in all directions. Yet the attack only slightly dented the limb. Out of luck and out of options Koleda desperately hammered away at the same spot, hoping that the Kraken would eventually let go. each strike tightening the grip around her until she began to cough up blood. With a fading conscience Koleda gasped her last breath before the Hollow Knight came to her rescue, a plate of the Kraken’s armor in hand. With a punch, he easily broke through the spot she was beating away at before. And with the plate he then jammed it into the open wound, severing any muscles that held the girl in the Etehreal’s grip. As the tentacles loosened their grip, Koleda then slipped through the opening and fell towards the open deck. Diving after her, the Hollow Knight quickly caught her in his arms and immediately jumped ship. Using the broken off plate as a shield, he then placed it in front of a weakened Koleda and with his back towards the water, he could absorb the brunt of the impact. As the two broke through the surface, the knight then began to dive deeper as he sensed the Kraken building up energy for a devastating attack.

Back on the ship, the Kraken neared the completion of its attack as it began to raise its tentacles upwards as if it were reaching for the skies and with it, its once glowing pods of light now radiated light so bright that it practically lit up the entire sea by itself. It was no wonder legends spoke of stars rising from the sea after witnessing such a sight. With the Kraken not moving an inch and no data other than an increase of ether density, everyone braced for impact for what would inevitably be a devastating attack. And they would be right as the Kraken would then slam all of its tentacles down, the stars hitting the ground first. The next moment was a blur as the world momentarily lost all of its color. The protective barrier of the command center of the ship was not spared nor the dark depths that the Knight and Koleda escaped to were far enough away as all were consumed by a white light. No sound was uttered, no sound could be heard as if it seemingly bowed to the deafening boom that shortly followed.

Chapter Text

In the aftermath of the Kraken’s attack, no information was given, no communications were received from the carrier. For a short while, the only people left were Belle and the rest of the Belobog crew as they hovered safely 10,000 feet above the battlefield. Although the light and sound momentarily stunned the group, it luckily didn’t affect two individuals. Eos and Trigger.

“Youch that was loud-” Trigger said as she allowed her hands to fall from her ears after covering them to dampen the sound of the attack. “What was that anyways?” Turning to the other cabin dwellers for answers.

“Ughh-” Ben and Thomas groaned out as they messaged their sensitive thiren ears. “I can still hear that numbing sensation from something that’s too loud.” Ben said.

Massaging her eyelids, Grace blinked a few times to no avail. “Proxy, can you tell us what’s going on? That felt like a flashbang right now so I'm guessing everyone else isn’t doing as hot.” Grace said before gasping suddenly. Standing up in a hurry, she tried to feel her way towards the window. “Wait! SweatPea! Where is she? Is she okay?” Grace worriedly said. The last thing everyone saw before going blind was watching as the Hollow Knight removed Koleda from the Ethereal’s grasp before diving into the sea.

It was true that the Kraken’s attack had little effect on mechanical constructs and by extension Belle. The attack was little more than a temporary blue screen to her. So with her slight advantage compared to the living, she sought out answers in their stead. Peeping out of the window at the scene below, Belle relayed information to her team as well as she could.

“Looks like the Kraken is still tied up. It’s resisting and pulling in its bindings, I’m not so sure about the Defense Force however-“ Belle relayed before she witnessed the few jets that were caught within the blast zone crash into the sea. “Whoa! The angels are falling one by one. Wait a minute,” Belle trailed off as she observed the platform around the Ethereal. “There’s no sign of severe damage to the foundation so it must have been a type of stun type attack. Like a stun grenade, but on a whole other level.

“Meaning those in the command center would be stunned as well.” Trigger said as she only received static and silence from her radio earpiece. Tracing her rifle with her silky fingers, Trigger then checked her ammo cartridges. “So while the main force recovers, it is up to us to continue the battle.”

Pondering the improv plan for a moment, Belle would rather retreat and retrieve the Void Hunter Miss Hoshimi Miyabi and the ref of Section 6 or the rest of their agents, but right now she’s in the hands of the Defense Force so she doesn’t have the option to leave. Well leave Eos that is. “Alright, what do we have? The thunder nuke, Grace’s grenades and you miss sniper.” Belle said before a pair of hands grabbed onto Eos.

“Proxy-“ Grace started. “What about Koleda? Is she safe?” Worry written all over her face. As much as Belle didn’t want to, she’d have no choice but to speak her mind as she couldn’t fully grasp the situation. Luckily for her however, Fairy finally chipped in and joined the conversation. Unfortunately it wasn’t the news she was hoping for.

“One life signal detected near the coastal reef. My analysis shows that it is a registered agent. Anton Ivanov, condition critical.” fairy said mechanically.

Shaking Belle in her grasp, Grace asked again frantically. “Koleda! What about sweet pea?” Her grip tightening. Despite the uncomfortable feeling of being held tightly, Belle couldn’t blame the mechanic as she felt the same earlier when she couldn’t find Wise.

“One moment-“ Fairy said as she put up a loading screen onto Eos’s face. After a few seconds of anticipating silence, she returned with devastating news. “No other life signatures besides those on the Defense Force’s ship were found in the surrounding area. Suggestion, please lower the altitude for a more accurate scan.” fairy suggested. The news, although not concrete, took away some hope in the crew. Especially Grace who was a direct family member of Koleda. Gently Grace put Belle down before standing back up quietly. Looking down at the ground, she bawled her fists as she hit her lip. Ben, now having a splint on his broken arm, used his other one to console Grace in her worst moments. That proved to be ineffective however as Grace quietly walked out of his range in order to grab the military issued rocket launcher. With a rare look of anger on her face, she walked over to Trigger, ready to join the fight.

Concerned about Grace's wellbeing, but choosing to remain silent, Belle continued with devising a plan in place of the Commanders. “Alright, as of right now our forces are spread out and we have little to no intel on the wellbeing of the main force. So here’s what we know, we have a super weapon here ready to be delivered but no clear opening to use it. I was listening in on the commander's plan earlier and I had Fairy look up the blueprints for the carrier. Fairy?”

Sparkling to life, Fairy continued Belle’s train of thought. “Affirmative, the carrier is made up of 70% steel with an aluminum alloy making up the other 30%. Meaning if the original plan had come to fruition. Then all aboard would be charred to a crisp.” The revelation caused all to scrunch their face, Trigger especially seemed conflicted at the news.”

Lifting her head up ever so slightly, Grace glared at little Eos in place of Fairy. “Are you saying my baby is completely useless then?” Grace said as she then lowered her head to simmer in her rage. All of the planning and last minute calibrations seemingly were for nought weighed heavily on the engineer as it cost her, her last remaining family.

“No-“ Fairy said as she regained Grace’s attention. “The ship itself is made of conductive material. However, the military has also invested heavily on a special coating of paint that not only repels marine life, but also prevents rust. All of which helps keep the maintenance costs low. Also, it so happens to be made of non-conductive material. Meaning-“

“Meaning we dish out damage now, then get it into the water or let it escape into the water and then let your baby finish it off for us.” Belle finished. Her actions received a side eye from Fairy. “Since we have both you and Miss Trigger here with us, all we have to do is chip away at it using your electric ammunition until reinforcements arrive. Sound good, everyone?” With clear orders Trigger signaled the pilot to hover near the ship and aimed her rifle. Using her ether vision, she no longer sees a cloak surrounding the Kraken as did moments ago, curious she conveys her findings.

“Hey Proxy, is the Kraken any different from before? I sense a change, but I obviously can’t see. So?” Trigger pointed out. Using her free hand, she waved her digits in front of her mask with a cheeky smile.

Curiously Belle approached the open door and grabbed hold of Trigger's thigh for support. Observing the Ethereal, she indeed noticed a difference in its appearance. Watching it from 10,000 feet up, she didn’t realize that it was completely black now. “Looks like its armored plating is gone. Hmm maybe it’s entire body acts like a lightbulb which utilizes its glowing ability and the armor is what kept it from going supernova like before. So when it lit up and created that shockwave, it lost its armor.” Belle summarized.

“Hoh? Then that means it's much more vulnerable to attack hehe.” Trigger chuckled out. Readying her sniper rifle, she cocked back the barrel before aiming her shot. With her target in sight and still resisting its restraints, she fired a bullet that traveled like a lightning bolt through the air and struck the Kraken in its massive head. The attack striking and piercing cleanly into the Ethereal before an electric shock spread along the wound. “Target wounded, we may not need reinforcement after all.” She joked as she readied another shot.

Whipping out a massive rpg launcher Grace loaded it with her electric grenades and took a position next to Trigger, her eyes filled with hate. “You’re right. Not after I'm done with it.” Grace said with a pull of the trigger. The next moment a cluster of grenades exploded forth from her barrel, each raining down and bouncing off of the Kraken upon landing. With a crackle of electricity, each one detonated into a garden of electricity, shocking the Ethereal more than ever. As the two women continued their electrifying assault on the Kraken, it sped up its thrashing as it attempted to escape its bindings. Using its immense strength, it collected a large cluster of the ropes with a single tentacle and began pulling it towards itself, hoping to snap it from the source. With every passing second, the Ethereal’s intent seemed to succeed with the Carriers tower leaning closer and closer towards the beast. With an aching creak of the tower, those inside can be seen leaning towards the window as they gazed down below.

Quickly Belle informed the group of what’s going on. “Oh no! If it keeps on pulling, then the tower is going to collapse! Everyone inside is going to fall. We need to quickly stop it or at least get rid of the ropes!” Belle said as she turned towards Trigger.

As Trigger continued to fire the rest of her magazine, she fluidly reloaded her cartridge before firing once more. “No can do Proxy, those ropes are made of a special nano fiber that’s incredibly durable, but also has an incredible amount of strength to them. If there are more than 10 attached to that Ethereal, then it’s not going anywhere.” She explained. Next to the woman, Grace pulled back her borrowed rpg as she ran out of electric grenades, looking around for more ammo she bit her lip as she realized that she used up every last one. Throwing her weapon to the side she turned to look down on the Ethereal once more before turning towards the nuke. Realizing that she may not be in the most rational state, she took a deep breath before pulling out her trusty nail gun. Making sure she had enough ammo for that, without informing anyone Grace then jumped out of the helicopter. Her actions caught everyone off guard.

Throwing himself forward, Ben roared out in concern as he reached towards the door, Belle followed as well to record the jump. “Grace!” He roared. He understood that she was upset and that she was grieving, but he didn’t think it would affect the mechanic this much. Especially not when the chance of Koleda still being alive was on the table. Helplessly, he could only watch as the mechanic plummeted towards the battlefield.

In the middle of her free fall, Grace held her hands to her side as she approached the Kraken in order to increase her speed. Using the laws of physics to her advantage, she then pressed a switch on the side of her nail guns in order to activate her upgrades. Ever since the Proxies called in for full support during the Bringer incident, the Belobog felt as if they were out of their league when big shots such as Section Six were present to take on the Sacrifice. So ever since then, Grace has been using the little time she had to make some minor upgrades to everyone’s gear. Of course Anton was reluctant to allow anyone to modify his drill as it was referred to as quote on quote “The Perfect Bro.” Regardless, everyone else didn’t mind the upgrades. Soon a retractable blade popped out from below the barrel, giving her weapon both a bayonet and a hook all in one. Using her newfound hook, Grace, with a swing of her arm, impaled the blade into eh krakens flesh. Allowing herself to fall to the ground, her weapon created a long gash as she descended. The sudden large amount of damage earned the mechanic the Kraken’s ire as it gave her its full attention.

Trying to trap Grace in its crushing grip, the Kraken attacked from multiple directions, giving her minimal chances to escape. Not deterred by the sudden attack, Grace jumped backwards as she unloaded her nailgun into the Ethereal’s visor, attempting to blind it before jumping up just high enough to dodge being grabbed. Underestimating her enemy however, Grace failed to calculate the extra limbs the Ethereal had at its disposal as it easily sent a few more coming her way. With no way to dodge midair, Grace pulled out her last move. Reaching behind her, she then grabbed her last electro grenade, a stronger version compared to what she used before, before chucking it into the air, missing the Kraken completely. As Grace was swatted to the ground, she panted heavily as she attempted to recover from the force of the attack. Hearing a distinct beastly roar caused her to pause for a moment before a small smile found its way onto her face. Throwing her head back, she locked onto her grenade just in time to see Ben plummeting toward it, with his one good arm gripping onto his ram, Ben than smashes the flat surface into Grace’s grenade and with his immense strength he landed a heavy blow onto the Kelane’s head, digging the artillery as close to the kraken’s insides as possible. After activating his rams own explosive mako, Ben launched himself back whilst simultaneously detonating the electro grenade. The impact visibly pushed the Krlane backwards as it was pushed to the edge of the ship, its tentacles hanging off the edge.

Leaning onto his ram for support, Ben landed next to the mechanic. “Ben, why are you here? We need you to lower the bomb-“ Grace said before being cut off.

“Thomas had it covered, did you really think I would let you fight alone Grace? If we lost you, how would Koleda react when we find her?” Ben questioned. His face completely serious.

At a loss for words, the mechanic bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes. She admits she was rather reckless with her behavior. Allowing her emotions to get the better of her really backfired as she probably did more game than good for the operation. Before she could apologize for her actions however, an incoming tentacle swung at the two unbeknownst to Ben. Quickly morning her face and pointing at the incoming attack, Ben turned around to block the attack, but before he could, a streak of fire met the attack first, slicing the tentacle in half. The origins of the flames then stood tall in front of the two.

“On your feet soldier,” Soldier 11 said as she extended a hand towards Grace. To which the mechanic accepted. After being brought to her feet, Soldier 11 returned to hacking away at the Kraken. Exchanging a glance, the two Belobog members got to work. Closing the distance, Grace spun and fired her nails toward the Ethereal, her attacks doing little damage without her electro grenades. Yet she persisted as she was actually preparing the stage for her baby to shine. Each metal rod impaling itself in the Kraken would allow the electric nuke to penetrate as deeply as possible into the Kraken, hopefully vaporizing the thing all in one go. With fantastic synergy the two Belobog crew members were relentless in their assault, with Grace laying on the damage and Ben barely blocking every attack that came from multiple directions. The heavy attacks he couldn’t quite block were weakened as Soldier 11 partially sliced through as many tentacles as she could, weakening each assault. The soldier figured out quickly that instead of allowing the Ethereal to completely regenerate a new limb, she should instead weaken its muscles and support the two agents till reinforcements arrived.

After a long few minutes of holding down the fort, the three agents were rewarded as a hatch on the ship's deck parted, raising an elevator with the familiar sight of a Typhon Slugger peeking out first . Unexpectedly however rather than a fleet of soldiers joining the battle, in their place was the singular mech as it stepped forward from its platform.

Confused, Soldier 11 wanted to verify why only a single soldier was dispatched. However, her time in the army has taught her to not question her superior’s orders. Luckily the two agents she was accompanying didn’t have to be so reserved as Grace questioned the situation. Her usually energetic fascination for machinery is buried by the urgency of the situation.

Reaching for her coms, Grace went off on the unknown soldier. “Are you kidding me!? Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad to have you on board, but a single person isn’t just going to change the tides!” To her shock and mostly to Soldier 11, a slight chuckle and a familiar voice rang out from the mech’s speakers.

“Oh? And here I thought I could get some action every once in a while and who said I came here alone?” Said Roland as the cockpit of the mech revealed the older gentleman.

Not long afterwards another figure jumped from the control tower and down besides Roland. A large mechanical anchor falling onto his side, a large amount of bundled up cords wrapped itself around his arm. “Roland, you should practice your phrasing. The way you said it was not the best,” laughed Drake as he slung his weapon over his shoulders.

Jumping backwards and landing in front of the two commanders, Soldier 11 saluted her superiors as she quickly put together the pieces. “Commanders, it is an honor to be fighting besides you two. I’m sure with your assistance the mission will finish shortly.”

Laughing as he walked past the soldier, Drake placed a hand on her shoulder as Roland followed suit. “At ease soldier, the enemy is a tough one, but it shouldn’t be a problem for the two of us. So why don’t you take five and let us handle it, yeah?” Smirking, Commander Drake then brought his anchor to his side as he walked towards the still bound Ethereal leaving the three agents to exchange glances. It would be best for them to stay out of the way lest they incur the Defense Force’s wrath for now.

With the two accomplished Commanders on the front lines the combatants received a much needed morale boost. With ease, Commander Drake initiated the scuffle by launching his massive anchor towards the Kraken’s head. The attack was easily swatted away by the Kraken before it was blasted by a barrage of missiles by Roland who quickly charged towards the Ethereal guns blazing. Using his mech’s jet propulsion, Roland then propelled himself diagonally towards Drake’s anchor, grabbing it with his left hand. With his right hand still firing a barrage of missiles toward the kraken, he then threw the anchor into the side of the Kraken causing it to recoil slightly. With a manic smile, Drake then flipped a switch on the handle. With the distinct sound of gears turning, the cord attached to the anchor then began to retract rapidly, pulling Drake immediately onto the Kraken. Unexpectedly instead of landing a hit with his anchor, the commander instead whipped out a small rod with a dormant red light on it. Twisting the rod, the light came alive, blinking rapidly. In one fluid motion, he stabbed the rod deep into the Kraken’s flesh, ensuring that the beast couldn’t pry it out somehow before falling down. Usually his situation would be considered a death sentence as he no longer had a foothold to dodge the attack. That is if he wasn’t in the capable hands of one of the Defense Force’s most accomplished commanders.

Setting his thrusters to full throttle, Roland crashed his mech into the side of the Kraken with incredible force before aiming his fist towards the falling Drake. Activating a switch to his side, Roland launched his fist towards drake. With smaller thrusters coming alive, the fist propelled itself towards Drak. The experienced Commander quickly grabbed hold of the first, holding on for dear life as the fist returned to Roland. “This plan of yours better work!” Said the older man.

Laughing, Drake then reclaimed his anchor that Roland reeled back. “In order to catch a big fish, you need a big hook and plenty of muscle right!?” Turning towards the three agents, Drake let out an order that shocked them. “Hit the deck! Men fire all missiles on the beacon!” Before the three could register his order a firework of missiles erupted from the ship from multiple directions, all of them spreading out and dancing in the air before homing in on the Kraken.

Recalling the small red blinking rod Drake personally planted onto the Ethereal, Soldier 11 smiled in satisfaction. Personally risking his own life instead of his soldiers in order to ensure victory? That was the type of Soldier she wanted to be. Her thoughts were interrupted as Ben pulled her away and placed her underneath him as he braced for impact. The deafening sound of explosions and the numbing sensation of a shockwave soon washed over them. Soldier 11 thankful that the bear thiren shielded them from the brunt of the attack chastised herself for losing focus once again. Thoughts of doubt lingered for a moment before a slight warmth quelled them, the thought of Wise then blinked by for a moment. Right, the mission isn’t over yet. She thought.

Once the heavy firepower died down, Ben let go of the two women, his ears ringing as he didn’t have the ability to shield them. Turning to see the aftermath of the barrage, they stood there in anticipation as the heavy smoke slowly disappeared. With no sounds or movement from the Ethereal, the soldiers lying in wait cheered out in victory. With an epic story of a gargantuan threat slayed, the soldiers began to congratulate each other. From up above, in the command center Dr.Ray was silently watching the smoke down below as her team cheered behind her. It was a risky plan involving their two most important figures risking their lives to slay the Kraken in one go. Like any scientist, she waited until the experiment concluded before she stopped her observation. And thankfully she didn’t stop as a shadow moved within the smoke causing alarm bells to ring in her head. Quickly, she issued out orders through the radio.

“Don’t let your guard down, it’s still alive!” Ray warned. The sudden warning prompted the Soldier 11, Grace and Ben to dawn a fighting stance once more as they readied themselves to continue the siege. From within the black smoke, a large object broke free, hurling itself towards the group before skidding along the deck with sparks flying off of it. Recognizing what it was, but powerless to stop it, the group allowed the Typhon mech to skid to a stop before the three checked on the condition of its pilot. There curled up in the mech’s arm laid an unconscious Drake.

Gasping in shock, Soldier 11 quickly called for first aid. “Medic! We have a C-5, possible broken bones on Commander Drake and slight scratches on Commander Roland. Requesting evacuation.” Loosening his grip on Drake, Roland gently placed him down on his back before getting back up to continue the battle, his face showing signs of frustration and distress.

“Soldier 11, you’re with me. This Ethereal is different from the ones we’ve faced before. I’m afraid it may very well be on the level of Nineveh if not greater.-” Roland said before relaying a message to Ray up in the command tower. “Dr. Are you getting all of this?”

Scanning the various graphs for increases in ether activity, Ray’s expression was also hardened as she now realizes that they were face to face with an elite level enemy. A variant of an original species, one that possesses increased power and abilities. Gazing back down at the clearing smoke, Ray was the first to get a clear look at the damaged ethereal. No longer did the Kraken stand tall as its torso, which most would mistake as its head was blown clean off thanks to all of the missiles fired at it. Likewise, its tentacles too were damaged severely. Hmm, most likely it used its limbs as a shield to protect its most vulnerable part, which means its core wasn’t in its torso, but rather somewhere in its head. Ray thought. “Ophelia, how are we on firepower? Can we throw anything else at it?”

Going through multiple communication lines with those above and below the ship, Ophelia made a detailed report of the ship's capabilities and with heavy shoulders she shook her head in defeat. Biting her lip, Ray tried to think up another plan. At this rate they would have to send out every soldier on board to gun down the creature, but typical military grade ammunition probably won’t have any effect on that thing and most soldiers weren’t trained in piloting the heavy hitting mechs either. We’re going to need a miracle if we’re going to pull through this one. What would you do in this situation Wise? Ray thought as she turned her gaze towards the moon. Snapping out of it, she had no choice but to work with what she’s got. And for now, the best she could do is share her knowledge with those who could still fight.

With their opportunity to finish off the Kraken lost, it began to pulse and grow like a tumor, a rainbow colored forcing the Ethereal to evolve once more. Not losing a second, Ray quickly came up with a plan after remembering that they did in fact have another big weapon lying in wait. “Alright men, what we are dealing with now is an evolved variant of an Ethereal known as an energized species, the fact that the Ethereal known as the Kraken had the ability to turn into one of these subspecies is shocking to say the least. But with little options left, I believe our best bet is to knock it overboard to allow for the Belobog’s secret weapon to take it out once and for all. The mechanic girl on the deck, do you think your weapon has what it takes?”

Shocked, Grace observed the Kraken’s size and considering the short skirmish she had with it caused her to ponder for a moment. Humming in thought, she then began to rythmaticaly nod her head. “Yeah…Yeah I think it will actually. If we can reach its core then my baby definitely can deal the finishing blow! With all of the nails I’ve impaled it with plus the natural conductivity of water, then it should just do the trick!” Grace said with a smile.

Grunting, Roland tried to take a step forward the Ethereal before his mech hunched over. “What!? No, what's happening? I have to finish the mission!” Roland exclaimed as he tweaked with the levers.

Happily, Grace jumped onto the mech's back before inserting her computer into the Typhon’s system, a small blueprint of the mech appearing on her screen. Seeing the problem she swiftly relayed the information to the commander. “Looks like that blow that sent you flying took some of your systems offline as well as heavily damaged one of your legs. Your mech should be capable of turning, but moving the legs and arms in any direction will be a challenge.”

Pondering for a moment Roland was about to chastise the girl for hacking into military property, but given the circumstances, he was willing to let this one go seeing as she was just as bruised and tired as his comrades. “Alright, I suppose what’s done is done,” he said. Sighing in defeat, Roland, seeing as he couldn’t directly participate without a mech, decided to tactically retreat in order to retrieve a new one. However, as he pressed the button that opened the latch to allow him to escape, there was no response. “Hm? Was this not the button?” He muttered to himself. This time he manually tried to open the hatch to no avail.

Seeing Roland struggle, Grace looked back at her computer only to find no problems with the hatch. Climbing her way around the suit, she then finds the problem. With a serious face she broke the news, “looks like you’ll be sitting tight for a while, the hinges are dented inwards. You’ll need extraordinary force to break the hatch loose or wait for rescue. Your call really.” She then hopped back down and towards Ben and Soldier 11 who’ve finished catching their breath. Begrudgingly, Roland could only wait to get back into the game.

Together the three agents worked together to come up with a plan to knock this Ethereal out once and for all. Speaking up first Soldier 11 brought up the most obvious idea. “For some reason, this Ethereal is in its transitioning or evolving state, so until it finishes its “evolution” it won’t attack us. So with that being said-” pointing her sword towards Ben “how about you knock the enemy away?”

Looking down in disappointment Ben nursed his broken arm, “If I had my right arm then I could maybe muster up the strength to land a heavy hit, but unfortunately I'm at about half strength now. If the president were here, she could do it no problem, but…” Ben said sorrowfully.

Narrowing her brows, Grace tried her best to create a patchwork solution as well. “If the Defense Force would allow me access to some weaponry. Wait, wait no that won’t work, we have little time.” Turning towards Soldier 11 Grace questioned her out of curiosity, “say, the Defense Force wouldn’t happen to have any secret weapon on the deck would they?”

Opening her mouth, Soldier 11 was about to only disclose information she knew, but a shockwave washed over her causing her to lose her balance. Turning back towards the source, the pulsing Kraken now began to emit shockwaves with each pulse, signifying the near completion of its transformation. “We’re out of time! If we have to do something, we have to do it now!” She said as she dashed towards the Kraken. This may not be the best idea, but just like Commander Drake, if I can tip the scales even a little for the rest of my comrades then my life is a small price to pay! Soldier 11 thought, drawing her blazing sword, she allowed it to trail behind her as she closed the distance, her focus preventing her from seeing the blur appearing above the Kraken’s shoulder.

Fortunately Grace and Ben who were trailing far behind Soldier 11 were in the right position to take in the extra detail. Narrowing their eyes, they witnessed a small rotating ball both black, silver and red spinning through the air and above the Kraken. As the ball expanded, limbs sprouted from the figure revealing the Hollow Knight back once again as water dripped off of his body. The sight of him caused the two to smile widely as in his hands was a lively redhead. “Sweetpea!” “Boss!” The two yelled.

Curled up in a ball, the Knight threw the young president towards the two. As Koleda hurled through the air, she quickly unwrapped herself before shifting her position so that she was facing the Kraken before yelling out orders to Ben. “Ben give me a boost!” She screamed at the top of her lungs. Ben, responding in kind dashed forward before exploding off the ground, his elation great enough to block off the pain in his right arm. Drawing back his Ram and meeting the President halfway, Koleda softly lands on the tip of his weapon. With his remaining strength Ben mustered up as much power as he could to send the redhead flying, turning her into a destructive wreckingball with deceivingly great power. Using her newfound position, Koleda then spun around in order to build momentum. Like a destructive meteor Koleda landed a nasty hit into the tumor-shaped Kraken sending it flying clean off the carrier.

Not allowing the beast to rest Grace commed Trigger and Thomas for the next phase of the plan. “Press the switch on the nuke and drop it now!” She yelled at the top of her lungs. On cue the helicopter that was once hovering above the carrier dropped the nuke. With all eyes on the weapon that was originally designed to wipe out the Kraken in its earlier stages, the combatants stood motionless. Neither the heavy rains nor the chilling winds stood an obstacle for the combatants as they all wanted to witness the exact moment the behemoth falls.

As the combatants watched the nuke slowly fall, Commander Roland was focused on another subject. The Hollow Knight stood tall before him, his deep eyes boring a hole into the Roland’s. Without a word the Knight jumped behind his mech, right out of his line of sight. The next moment Roland began to hear the sound of metal being punctured and ripped apart. Before he could protest however the lights in his cockpit began to flicker before turning off completely. From his previous observation he realized that the Knight was in fact syphoning his mech’s power, using it as his personal battery. The thought of being disgraced angered him so, cementing the idea that he was a threat to New Eridu. But then a thought occurred, this one was different from the rest. It isn’t overly aggressive like other Ethereals. So why is it still powering up?

His thoughts were interrupted as a bright blue light pierced the glass. A pillar of electricity erupted from the sea and into the heavens before it quickly dissipated and was replaced with a larger, more fierce electric shock, expanding and stretching into the clouds like a tree, blinding anyone who looked directly at it. The sheer power of the weapon electrified the air causing everyone in close proximity to feel a slight electric shock against their skin and the familiar feeling of a positive charge when going down a slide. In the command room the pillar reflected off of Ray’s glasses as she stood there impressed, an idea forming in her head for the near future.

After the light died down, the group ran towards the ship’s edge in order to confirm the destruction of the Kraken. Gazing into the water still teeming with electricity, they found the Kraken turned completely upside down, its suction cups and beak visible. The sight reminded them of how aquatic life tends to end up when dead. Exchanging glances with each other, a smile began to creep onto their faces as the nightmare was finally over.

Laughing heartily, Ben grabbed hold of Soldier 11 and Grace, surprising the two as he swung them back and forth. “All right! We did it, yeah!” Despite not liking physical contact with a stranger, Soldier 11 allowed the bear thiren to have his way as a reward for being a pivotal player in the battle.

Wanting to be part of the celebration, but not wanting to stand out, Koleda instructed Ben to put the two girls down before giving her own little victory remarks. “You all did good out there, but next time let's stay professional alright?” She said as she crossed her arms.

As Ben placed the two down, Grace turned to Koleda and pulled her into a tight hug that left the redhead squirming. “Hey! Grace let me go! Not in front of the Defense Force come on!” Koleda said her squirming stopped immediately as she heard a sob escape the mechanic’s lips however. Looking up towards the older girl, Koleda was speechless to see tears running down Grace’s face.
"I'm ok, that Knight or whatever did its best to save me I think and somehow it knew that it needed me to rejoin the battle. But hey we won so its all good now." Koleda rambled on

Grasping Koleda’s cheeks in her hands, Grace took a good luck at the girl before whispering to her, “I thought I lost you Sweatpea. I don’t know what I would do if I lost another family member.” Pulling Koleda back into a quick hug, Grace quickly went back to her normal self as she observed the aftermath of her invention with Koleda joining her

Taking a glance towards the mechanic once more, Koleda put on her serious face. “Grace?” she said. Waiting for a response, Grace let out a hum of response. “You do know we’ll have to answer to the Defense Force about how you were able to create such a powerful weapon right?”

Standing their smiling Grace was ready to go off on the details of her creation, but rather than giving a detailed explanation she only sighed calmly. “Yeah, I know. I’m sure it’ll work out though. Consider it an expansion for Belobog Industries! Not only do we have reliable construction, but we also dabble in a bit of weaponry. If we think about this as a business venture, the extra income could be good for the company.” Knowing that the Defense Force would have their eyes on her for a while, Grace could only accept that things would never be the same again. But regardless, she would continue doing what she loved.

Reporting to her superiors and Trigger, Soldier 11 delivered the news of the Kraken’s elimination. “Dr.Ray do you copy?” she started

“I copy Soldier, status?” Ray responded.

“Target has been eliminated, no signs of life. Mission accom-” before Soldier 11 can finish her sentence, the Kraken’s body convulsed and its tentacles slightly wriggled around. Alarmed, but still disciplined, she updated her report. “Negative, the target is still active. Status gravely injured. Conclusion, its core is still active.” Drawing her blade, she thought of all possible locations. The torso is completely destroyed, so behind its eyes is the most likely scenario, but the nuke made by the proxy’s companion landed essentially on top of it, so it can’t be there. Then that leaves- she thought, her ears picking up the sound of thumping approaching her fast. Swinging her blade backwards, she stopped it inches away from her comrades as they recoiled at the motion. However, their eyes quickly went back towards the area above her. Following their line of sight, she managed to catch a blur jump off the ship and towards the Kraken.

Landing on the Ethereal, the Hollow Knight sent ripples across the water before jumping towards the beak of the Kraken. Recalling the sight of its core the last time the Kraken pinned the Knight below it. With his monstrous strength he gripped his fingers on the edges of the beak and pried it open revealing a rainbow black orb of ether energy. Seeing the orb, the Hollow Knight illuminated his spines one by one as an aura of energy began to radiate off of them before firing his ether breathe right into the core. With his untamed energy, his breath attack began to spread not only inside the Kraken, but also spilling out of it, illuminating its entire body. Breathing heavily the Knight slumped over upon finishing his task. With his clawed hand, he reached down into the beak and freed the Kraken’s diminishing core and bit into it. The core condensed itself and shone brightly in his mouth before eventually being swallowed by the Knight. Without a core, the Ethereal’s main body began to evaporate as do most ethereals on their deathbed. Before he lost his foothold, the Knight looked back towards the ship before leaping away. What he didn’t expect however was a rocket hitting him in his back, sending him crashing into the water. Before he could see where the attack came from a bright light shone upon him from various directions. Looking in a different direction, the sound of helicopter blades spinning caught his attention.

Then the amplified voice of Roland echoed across the dark seas as he issued out orders through the ship’s speakers. “Soldiers, the fight is not over yet. I'm sure you are all tired after working so hard to take out the Kraken, but now we have another threat to New Eridu in the grasp of our hands. I am now issuing the order to take out the Ethereal responsible for finishing off the Kraken. Fire at will!”

The three Belobog members stood there in shock at the words they just heard. Soon after a mob of soldiers armed with rifles and various ranged weaponry rushed onto the deck and towards them before aiming down towards the Knight floating in the water. The three were outraged at the thought, but understood the Defense Force’s reasoning. Even if the Knight saved their lives, that doesn’t give him an out of jail free card. After all, he was an Ethereal. So begrudgingly they stayed silent until a soldier noticed them and escorted them away.

Not wanting to deal with the crowd, the Knight opted to dive down and swim away. But the moment he attempted to move, an electric infused bullet struck him in the chest. Looking up, a blonde sniper kept her sights locked onto him, her intent ready to kill. As if on cue the rest of the Defense Force took the shot as a signal and began unloading their rounds into the Knight. With no foothold, the Knight was powerless against their assault. Instead he allowed for the few to damage him as he dove down deep, he understood that the deeper he dove, the less likely any bullets would be able to hurt him as they lost velocity in the water. He could very well escape the situation now that he’s essentially invisible in the dark sea, however instinctively he felt a change happening in his body. Feeling the need to follow his instincts he then began to curl up and absorb a massive amount of ether from the hollow. His body radiating a fiery pink aura all the meanwhile. Humming in restraint, he felt a buildup of energy throughout his body unlike when he used his breath.

|

In the command tower Grace and Koleda were politely escorted to the research team led by Ray. Who stood there eyeing over various graphs and reports her team of researchers were running around gathering new intel.

“Ma’am we have increased ether activity readings!” A female researcher said as she shoved a graph into Ray’s face in a panic.

“The hollow is losing its ether density!” A male researcher screamed across the room. Back and forth various researchers repeated the motions as Koleda blankly stared at the scene.

With her fiery personality she then caught the researchers attention with a loud shout, “Hey!” The activity died from the outburst. Clearing her throat, she then began to speak in a much quieter voice. “Can someone please tell me why we are here?” She questioned. From behind, a soldier in charge of the door placed a hand on her shoulder, ready to throw her out.

Before he could, however, a hand reached out to him, “hold on, she stays.” Said Ray as she hands someone her reports before turning her attention to the two. “Hello Ms.Belobog, Ms.Howard. It's a pleasure to meet you two.” Ray started. Gesturing around the room she continued, “we’ve all witnessed your battle with the Kraken. Your skills are definitely not that of a normal construction company nor that of a citizen. Dare I say you could probably take a few dozen regular soldiers on and still come out on top. It’s no wonder you’re affiliated with him.”

Looking at each other confused, Koleda questioned the researcher. “Who? Also, where did you take Ben? And where are you going with this?” She asked in increasing intensity.

IN the same tone, Ray answered the girl’s question in order. “If I remember correctly, you two tagged along with the private investigator at Scott Outpost a few months back. And by private investigator, I mean Wise.” Hearing his name the two made sure to keep extra quiet in order to preserve his identity as a proxy. “As for your friend, the Thiren was taken to the med bay, his broken arm was in fact reported on the private helicopter he jumped out of. You don’t need to worry, once we transfer him to a hospital he’ll be free to go once the doctors give the go ahead. Lastly and most importantly, I would like your help.” Ray finished as she turned to walk towards the window.

Exchanging glances once more Grace gulped slightly before responding. “And what exactly do you need help with?” She asked. In her mind she already knew the answer. After the weapon she created, there was no way the Defense Force was going to let her go freely. She just didn’t know what kind of loophole law or story they’ll use to force her into working for them.

Without even turning around Ray looked at the screen displaying ether density above the window before looking back out of it. “With that.” She said, On cue the hollow around them condensed and collapsed, bringing them back to New Eridu waters. The event brought more questions to the two as well as the researchers. However, they wouldn’t have time to voice their questions as another shockwave exploded in the water beside the carrier, startling the noncombatants.

"Holy Shit!" Koleda gasped. Only to be patted down by Grace.

Finally turning around, Ray continued her explanation. “As you can see, New Eridu is facing some more threats and I believe it would result in more Ethereals like the Kraken and the Hollow Knight appearing. Which is why I need you.” Ray said as she pointed towards Grace. The action resulted in Grace gripping her fist as she bit the inside of her lip.

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In the raging waters of Port Elpis, Wise hazily gazed up towards the moon as it was the only source of light that broke through the surface of the sea. With his memories and consciousness in a haze, the last thing he could remember was the same feeling of sinking deeper into the sea. This time the faces of Soldier 11 and the rest of the Belobog crew flashed in his mind causing him to question why he thought of them in particular. Unable to move his body he gazed towards the moon as he sank lower and lower. Slowly closing his eyes, he failed to see a dark shadow swimming towards him from the center of the moon. The last thing he saw before fading away was the tail of a shark as it swam across his vision.

Chapter Text

Every step he took his foot would crash into the still water causing it to splash, everywhere he looked he only saw an endless mirror-like plain. The moment Wise woke up he found himself in some strange place. When he looked up towards the sky, he only saw the night sky. Stars as far as the eyes can see, galaxies closer than they should be and planets so visible he could draw them in detail. And below his feet a calm sea made up the ground reflecting the sky, below was the dark abyss he’s seen on many occasions from the depths in his dreams and the familiar darkness found in the waters of Port Elpis. The water was so calm, so dark, yet reflected the starry sky so well. He doesn’t remember how he got here or how long he’s been walking. But Wise knew that he had to keep walking. Walking towards the only visible landmark in this endless realm. A large rectangular crystal cut through the landscape’s minimalist theme, yet accentuated its otherworldly charm. After having walked for what felt like days, Wise finally took his first steps before the giant crystal. Its shape, its smooth sides, there was no doubt about it. This was a mirror, Wise thought. However, it was no ordinary mirror. Just like before, standing before him was not a reflection of himself, but a reflection of the infamous Hollow Knight. His stature towering over Wise like a skyscraper. Why am I so fixated on you? I am nothing like you. He thought as he stared at the reflection. Walking to the side, Wise watched as the Knight perfectly mirrored his moves, turning and walking whilst maintaining eye contact with him. When he stopped in his tracks, so did the knight.

Sighing in exhaustion, Wise walked towards the reflection. His body was so close, his breath fogged up the reflection. By this point he had already figured out that he was in a dream of his own making, yet he didn’t understand why he could’t force himself awake nor why his subconscious would create such a place for him to wander. There were so many questions from him yet no one to answer them. Regardless, looking back towards the fogged up Knight, he felt that he should at the very least respect his mental projection of the hero that saved his neighborhood. So, raising his hand up to the giant mirror the Knight copied his movements and after wiping the condensation away, he saw not the armored face of the Knight, but his own staring right back at him. With their hands resting up against each other, Wise observed every single detail of his mirror self. From the well defined armor of the Hollow Knight, its claws, its tail all connected to his face, his hair. The only difference with his face being the glowing green eyes that fluctuated purple every now and then. As he stood there watching in silence, unexpectedly his mirror self widened its eyes before moving on his own, pointing towards the ground behind Wise. Curious, Wise turned to see where his mirror self was pointing only to freeze in fear as a large pair of eyes stared at him from the abyss.

A cold sweat ran down his temple as he recalled his dream from before. A large Ethereal swimming through the darkness like water, the one that killed Billy and destroyed Lumina Square. Despite feeling absolutely terrified, Wise, remembering that this realm was just a dream, fought through his fears and mustered up the courage to speak his mind.

“You, who are you?” Wise began, his question not invoking a response from the creature, hoping his subconscious mind would allow it to speak, to tell him why it haunts him. “I’ve seen you before, in another dream. You chased me down! What are you? What are you after?” He spoke louder. Calm and composed Wise, don’t show fear, don’t show any fear! He thought to himself. After a moment of silence, there was no response by the creature, it just stood there staring back at Wise. The subtle movements and ripples in the water were the only indicator that the Ethereal was even there. Hearing the distinct sound of knocking, he turned back towards the mirror, feeling a chill run through him. No longer did the Knight have his face as its own, but that wasn’t what made Wise feel such dread. It was the fact that he made a crucial mistake. He had turned his back on a monster.

Snapping his head back towards the giant Ethereal, he could only recoil as the Ethereal had already broken through the water and had him in its jaws. He screamed in fear as he was then swallowed by the darkness before shooting upright in his bed. Panting heavily, Wise found himself in the safety of his own room. What happened? Wasn’t I drowning just a moment ago? He thought as a sigh escaped his lips. Realizing he was now safe, he crashed his head back into his pillows. Feeling too tired to answer any questions, he allowed himself to get comfortable. Drawing his sheets up to cover himself from the light, he hugged his limited edition Astra Yao body pillow tightly. He couldn’t quite remember when it happened, but it seems he’s developed a habit of hugging things in his sleep since getting the pillow. Of course by the time he woke up he’d always hide it in his locker lest Belle catches him red handed. There would be no end to the teasing in that case. Regardless, now is his time to relax and the pillow's vanilla scent is calling him. So, resting his chin on top of the pillow, he gave it a short but deep sniff before relaxing into it.

And then it moved, it wriggled a bit in his hold causing him to widen his eyes in shock. Wait a second I don’t remember taking my pillow out. No! Wait! My body pillow is lavender scented, not vanilla! Now who or where did I remember smelling vanilla? Wasn’t it on? Oh god no. Wise thought as a million questions ran through his head. Feeling the wriggling in his hands intensify, he accepted his fate and the beating he was about to receive as he unwrapped his arms around the vicious predator, allowing it to beat him to oblivion. When it turned around to face him he closed his eyes in acceptance. Go easy on me Belle. He thought as the girl climbed on top of him. She then rested her hands on his shoulder close to his neck. Ah strangulation? That’s a new one. Wise thought, only to be shocked when the attack on his life never came, instead the girl rested her head on the nape of his neck.

Puzzled, Wise tried to shift his body to an upright position, but found it much harder to move due to the weight of the girl. “Uhh. Hello? Would you mind getting off of me? You’re a bit heavier than I remembered.” He said with a chuckle. The comment stirred the beast into action.

“Oh? So you’ve chosen death huh proxy?” An icy voice said beneath the covers. A chill ran through his spine not only because of the killing intent, but because of who the voice belonged to. Sitting up herself, the covers fell from her shoulders revealing a much more lethal monster. A predator with azure scales, a lustrous underbelly and a maw lined with razor sharp teeth. There sat on top of him was Ellen Joe as she glared daggers into him, her tail swaying side by side and a light blush adorned her face. With her body language showing an intent to kill, Wise panicked and did the only thing he could. Thinking about how he would treat Belle in this situation, he brought the tips of his hand up against his forehead before brushing her bangs to the side and cupped her cheek. The action startled Ellen as her blush grew darker and her glare softened as her mouth slightly parted. Wait, what is he?- Ellen thought in a panic as Wise then wrapped his other arm around her waist. No way! No way is this happening right now! With her inner voice becoming dreamy, Ellen’s expectations began to rise, prompting her to slowly close the distance between the two. Her excitement caused her to miss his words. With her lidded eyes she then began to pucker her lips, ready to make contact before she was promptly flipped onto her back, her position with Wise now switched. Shocked, Ellen layed there thinking about what could happen next.

In Wise’s mind, things were a lot different than what Ellen had in mind. Alright Wise think carefully, you have a kick ass high schooler on top of you that slices through Ethereals like they’re fruit and somehow you managed to piss her off! What can I do to get out of this? He questioned himself. Relying on his memories of the girl and the feeling of her on his body, he is reminded of how tall Ellen actually was. Alright so she’s about as tall as Belle, a little heavier though. Maybe if I-. Doing some quick calculations in his head, Wise mentally nodded at himself for his quick thinking. Ok, brother/sister tactic #3 the reverse pin should work. I’ll flip her over before using the momentum to push off of her and book it to the door, then it’s a matter of finding Belle in the front desk or worst case scenario getting one of the neighbors to save me. Mentally nodding to himself again, Wise was ready to inaction his plan. Alright step one, make contact. Raising his right hand and resting it on Ellen, he then gently massaged her head. Step one accomplished. Step two, get a solid grip on the target. Using his other arm, he wrapped it around Ellen’s waist, giving her a tight squeeze. Alright now for the hard part, she’s a bit heavier than Belle so I have to be a little rougher.

“Sorry Ellen, I’m going to get a bit rough,” Wise said as he tightened his grip around her. Using all of his strength, he then flipped Ellen over and pinned her to his bed. Alright now’s my chance! Ah- Wise thought, to his dismay however, Ellen was far faster than he was. The girl can cut bullets and missiles in half, of course this wasn’t going to work. Wise thought as Ellen wrapped her arms around his neck. Just then he froze as he saw the look on the girl’s face, specifically in her eyes. Unsure of what that look meant he dared not move. Luckily for him, his door opened up to reveal Belle and Qingyi who were having a nice conversation as they entered the room before they stopped dead in their tracks after seeing Wise and Ellen in a compromising position causing Ellen to click her tongue upon being interrupted.

Relieved, Wise practically begged as he greeted his sister. “Belle! I’m glad you’re here. Can you help me out of this situation?”

Seemingly losing all her color Belle stood there in shock, her pupils going back and forth between her brother and best friend. A blank expression on her face said it all. Behind her Qingyi was furiously downloading snapshots to tease Zhu Yuan with later, her face dawning a small smile all the meanwhile. Snapping out of her shock, Belle then backs up, pushing Qingyi out the door. “Sorry for interrupting you two.” Belle said as she retreated from the room.

Wise, not wanting to be left alone with what he assumed to be an angry Ellen, jumped to his feet, ready to chase after his sister. However, the moment his foot landed on the floor, he abruptly lost his balance as he couldn’t feel his leg. Before he could fall face first onto the ground, Ellen quickly exploded from his bed to catch him in her arms.

“Whoa there Proxy! You’re still hurt pretty badly so take it easy.” Ellen said in worry. Hearing this Belle and Qingyi stopped their retreat before hurling the door open and joining Wise’s side.

Placing her hand onto his forehead Belle quickly asked a series of questions regarding his health as she checked his temperature. “Wise! Are you ok? How do you feel? What happened in the hollow?” Belle didn’t get to continue her assault as Qingyi gently pulled her back.

“Easy there Belle.” Qingyi softly said as she held onto the girl's arm until she visibly settled down. “Good,” she said as she turned towards Wise. “Alright manager, let’s get you back into bed and then we start the questioning.” Qingyi continued as Ellen gently placed Wise down on the bed and tucked him in before curling up next to his legs in an attempt to sleep.

Turning to look at the automaton with a confused face, Wise asked, “what do you mean? What happened?” Thinking for a moment as to why Qingyi was here and the state he was in, he then remembered about the series of events that unfolded before. “Oh the fishing competition?”

Qingyi nodded in response as Belle then briefed him of the events. “Wise, a few days ago you and Qingyi spent the entire day at Port Elpis for the Angler Championships and made it to the final round where Qingyi nominated you for the spot to compete for your team-,” Belle explained before she was cut off by Qingyi.

“Before you and the civilians were swallowed up by a Hollow. I apologize manager, I’m sure you would have followed to cheer me on given the circumstances with the fishing association, what with their allowing everyone to come see the results up close and personal and all. And although you survived, you could have been the one of many who lost their lives that day. But regardless, me nominating you had put you in grave danger and for that I apologize.” Qingyi finished with a bow.

Sitting up again, Wise put his hands up for some reason as he tried to get Qingyi to stop. “No I agreed to take your place, so if anything it was the consequences of my own mistake. So please don’t take it too hard, Qingyi.” Wise said, yet his heart was heavy as there was confirme deaths.

“Ok.” Qingyi responded immediately as she went back to her calm expression which made him smile.

“WOW. The switch up was crazy.” Belle responded before turning back to her brother. “Back to the story, after you and Ben got trapped in the hollow; you called me for help about a giant Ethereal and we had to get the Defense Force for help in both evacuation and offense,” Belle finished.

Contemplating what he just heard, Wise then tried to think of all of the variables and put the puzzle together. “Alright I think my memory has been jogged enough.” Wise sighed as he took a deep breath. “So it was all real then. And here I thought it was just a nightmare.

Sitting beside his bedside, Belle places a hand on Wise’s forearm. “Bro, we were looking everywhere for you, when Ben said you got hurt and sent flying. We looked and looked, but no one was able to find you until everything was over,” Belle said as she was lightly tearing up.

Recalling the event, Wise winced at his stupidity at that time. Yeah of course I couldn’t block an attack that could shatter a boulder. He thought. Closing his eyes, Wise explained to the three his whereabouts. “I remember being sent flying and then sinking because I couldn’t move my body. Then the ether corruption started to take over.”

Hearing this, the three girls exchanged glances. With their already shared information, they had a silent conversation before breaking down his argument. Speaking up, Belle was the first to break the silence. “I suppose the ether crystals forming around your body could have been the reason why Fairy couldn’t find your vitals-.”

“And why we couldn’t find you using thermal vision technology. Pub Sec was the one responsible for evacuating the civilians so we had a bunch of hands out on the water, all with eyes on scanning the surface.” Qingyi continued.

“But if the timeline is correct, then you’ve been underwater for about 30 minutes bro. From the moment Ben witnessed you get sent flying to the moment Ellen found you.” Belle finished.

Uncurling from her position, Ellen crawled towards Wise and Belle and promptly rested her chin on his thigh. “When I found you, Proxy, you weren’t showing any signs of ether corruption. No crystals, no lesions, nothing.” Ellen said with a yawn.

“Huh that’s strange.” Wise said as he was baffled. His lack of response however garnered the attention of the three girls.

“Bro is there something you’re not telling us?” Belle said as she leaned in closer.

“My, my manager and here I thought we became rather close fishing buddies.” Qingyi said as she pouted. Ellen on the other hand started to doze off.

Feeling like he was stuck in a difficult position, Wise felt as if needed to come up with a solution fast. Doing his best to recall any bits of information he can, he managed to recall two things. “Oh wait! I remember hearing a loud boom and a bright light for a moment and then I think I saw?” Memories of a certain redhead came to mind. “Koleda?” Wise said.

Just as the name left his mouth, the devil in red came walking in. “You called?” The once raspy now childlike voice called out. Entering the room Koleda revealed her bandaged form, following shortly behind her was Ben, a sling encasing his arm.

“Koleda! They already let you two out?” Belle said, shocked that the two injured agents were discharged so soon.

Walking up to the group, Ben looked over the proxy with regret. “The Defense Force put us in a special healing pod and that drastically sped up our recovery, but of course it can’t heal all of the damage and it was expensive so we couldn’t get to one hundred percent. But we’re really thankful for the amount of time we did get.” Ben said dejectedly. Kneeling down towards Wise, Ben gave a remorseful look, his ears layed flat. “Look, I'm really sorry for not being able to protect you Proxy. I pride myself in keeping my coworkers at Belobog safe, but the one time I had everything on the line and I blew it.”

“Ooh Ben.” Belle mumbled as she consoled the bear. “It’s not your fault, you were out having a good time.”

“Yeah Ben, don’t beat yourself up for it. It was too much for anybody to handle. And don’t even worry about what happened to me. I just got overconfident and thought I had a moment of invincibility.” Wise chuckled as he apologized. Looking down towards Ellen resting on his lap, he then began to run his fingers through her hair as if she were a cat causing the girl to blush in response.

“Oh~,” Qingyi hummed in amusement.

Not wanting everyone to feel down, Koleda shifted the atmosphere by getting back to business. “Look, we all bit off a bit more than we can chew, but the good news is its over and nobody died so how about we share some info yeah?” Koleda said as she looked around. After receiving a bunch of nods, she continued. “The Defense Force is making a move, with the appearance of the Hollow Knight and the Kraken, an announcement is going to be made soon to all of New Eridu.”

“What kind of news are we talking about here?” Wise asked.

Unexpectedly Koleda grew agitated at the response. Controlling her anger, she vaguely responded, “the kind where I can’t disclose. I signed an NDA so unfortunately I can’t share the information with you until its announced. I’m sorry, managers.”

Thinking things through, the two siblings could’t think about why they weren’t allowed to know, but understood the nature of the request. If it could shut up Koleda then it would be big news. “We understand Koleda.” Belle responded.

“So uh…,” Koleda awkwardly said as she scratched her head. Looking slightly away to hide her blush she asked, “So uh, Wise, you said you were thinking about me?”

Caught off guard at the sudden change in tone, Wise went along with the new mood. “Yeah, when I was about to black out, I thought of you for some reason. Like a flash of your face occupied my thoughts for a moment,” he said nonchalantly. “Actualy now that I think about it, why did you flash across my mind? Not that you wouldn’t because you’re an important friend of course.” Wise asked

His results would backfire however as Koleda would visibly seem ticked off. But when questioned, she would brush it off. In a huff, she said “maybe you caught a glimpse of me since I was fighting in the Hollow too.”

“Huh were you?” Wise asked.

Confirming the info, Belle explained the situation. “That’s right bro, Belobog Industries did say they were coming when you called us. We had to get Ben and Thomas out of there after all. You should have seen it, they were all really amazing! And guess what? The Hollow Knight was there too!” Belle said excitedly. The mentioning of the name triggering flashes in his mind.

“Actually if you want to see a video of him fighting, there’s one on the interknot.” Ellen included.

“Huh really? There’s actual footage of the fight?” Ben questioned. His face puzzled.

“Yeah, it was by a famous influencer, she joined the fishing competition and was caught up in the hollow disaster. In fact, the disaster was broadcasted throughout New Eridu because of the amount of people that were caught up in the middle of nowhere.” Ellen responded.

From Wise’s computer, Fairy occupied the screen. “Allow me to give everyone a better viewing experience.” Fairy said. With all three monitors showing the influencer’s recording, the speakers throughout the room came alive.

First came a vod of the once live stream. “Howdy New Eridu! It’s the loveliest flower of them all Clara coming to you live from Port Elpis. News around the interknot is a super rare type of fish is currently active near the coral reef and the fishing association is giving finalists front row seats to fishing them all up!” The pink haired girl said in a overexagerrated voice.

“Oh hey I know her.” Wise said as he recalled the pink haired girl making content around Sixth Street.

“Shush now Wise.” Belle said as everyone continued to watch the stream.

The next scene showed the events of the competition as Clara was disqualified in the first round, but stuck around to record more content. Soon afterwards as the sun began to descend, the fishing association announced the opportunity for everyone to make a trip out towards the island. “Oh yeah! Everything's turning up Clara! Shout out to the Fishing Association for allowing me and all these fine people behind me the chance to ride out to sea!”

After arriving on the island, not much happened as everyone present witnessed how long it took before Wise managed to catch anything. What did get caught on camera however is a bunch of people complaining and Thomas’s legendary speech towards the unruly bunch that was definitely clipped and spread throughout the Interknot. Trying to farm content in this otherwise boring situation, Clara tried to use that moment to squeeze out views.

“Wow, W bear am I right everyone? I’m betting that guy will become the face of faunus kind later. That was just a little too natural don’t you think?” In the audience of the room, Koleda and Ben stood proud at how famous their coworker became, every now and then they would receive gift baskets at Brande St. But didn’t know why until now. “Wait wait wait! Look everyone! One of the finalists hooked something and it looks big!” Clara said, regaining everyone’s attention. When the camera shifted forward, it revealed Wise as he struggled to reel in his catch.

“Hmm they got my good side.” Wise joked. A punch found its way onto his arm by his sister.

“Oh wow look at you go bro! Yeah you reel that fish in!” Belle hollered.

“I was right to choose you as our representative.” Qingyi exclaimed.

The tension grew higher as the broadcast revealed Wise losing his ground. In the heat of the moment the various competitors came together to help Wise with his catch. Each of them clutching a portion of his fishing rod and others pulling him back so he doesn’t get dragged into the water.

Clicking her tongue in annoyance, Clara was disappointed that Wise didn’t get dragged into the water as it would have surely brought in more views. “Awww so close everyone! We were about to witness an epic fail, but luckily for this contestant, he had the god of sportsmanship riding his tail! Just look at how everyone came together to help him out!” Clara finished.

“That was probably my favorite part.” Ben said with a smile before he turned into a frown. “What came next however wasn’t.”

As Wise fished up the old submarine revealing priceless art and jewels, Clara was bragging to her chat. “Hey everyone, I overheard a conversation with President Qi! Apparently all the treasure you saw in the submarine once belonged to a famous phantom thief! Not only that, everything is being transferred over to Pub Sec for a decade long case! Oooh If only I had a chance to swipe a necklace or two!.”

Thinking that the event was over and no more content was available, Clara was ready to close out her stream before disaster struck. “Alright everyone, thank you guys for joining todays stream! The fishing competition was a lot of fun, but unfortunately we couldn’t see that super rare fish! Thanks for all the love and support and see you all next-,” Her stream would be interrupted as a Hollow formed around her, cutting off her stream. Just then some text would flash across the recording. The Next Part Was Recorded Off Stream. When the image came back, a visibly terrified Clara could be seen hyperventilating on camera.

“Oh my gosh everyone! You wouldn’t believe what just happened! A hollow formed around me and everyone else out here in the middle of the water and an absolutely massive Ethereal just came out of nowhere and is keeping us on the island!” Clara said before reversing the camera to show the Kraken.

With tears running down her face she continued, “Oh my gosh i'm too young to die, this isn’t what civilians should face! Pub Suc! Section Six! Save me!” She begged. In the next scene, Clara hid behind the giant boulder near the dock, this time less stressed.

“No way no way no way! Everyone, you won’t believe this!” Clara said with a sniffle. Turning her camera back towards the open area she revealed the Hollow Knight in action. “Its the Hollow Knight from the Interknot! If he’s really here to protect us then we’re saved!” She excitedly exclaimed. Her beliefs would further solidify as the Knight effortlessly dodged every attack thrown at it and exploited the Ethereal’s size and biology. WIth every moment passed the fight would get closer and closer until the Kraken got the upper hand and jumped onto the Knight.

With all hope lost, Clara muffled a scream as she tried to stay hidden. However, her fears would come to a halt when a bright light radiated from beneath the giant causing it to streak in pain. The disgusting smell that followed indicated that the Kraken took some serious damage as it plunged into the sea before disappearing. When the camera flipped back to show Clara’s shocked expression, her face then morphed into that of a fan crazed girl. “Whoa! Did you see that everyone! The Hollow knight got trampled by an attack that literally shook the island! And then, and then he just…Blasted it! Right into the water! Oh my gosh that was so exciting! Now I know why all the losers- I mean passionate fans go watch those loud explosion movies! That was awesome!”

When the streamer spotted something in the distance she practically jumped from joy on camera. “Yes! It’s Pub Sec! They’re here to rescue everyone! Alright l, I hope you guys enjoyed this exclusive off stream broadcast. So be sure to leave a like and subscribe and follow all of my other social media if you want to stay tuned to my adventures throughout New Eridu~” Clara said as she posed before ending her recording with Pub Sec cruisers coming closer.

Leaning forward, Qingyi commented, “oh hey it’s me,” as she pointed to a distant silhouette too far in the already dark background. Her comment earned her a slight robotic chuckle from Fairy.

“Wow, the way it fights is unique. It’s like it fought like its opponent was beneath it.” Wise described. His comment earned the looks of his friends.

“Yeah bro? How do you figure?” Belle asked.

Thinking about it for a moment, Wise asked Fairy to shift back to when the Knight dodged the tentacles and paused the video there. “Right here, it’s like he saw the attacks coming like how speedsters in movies and comics could see everything in slow motion. The knight didn’t even bother to leap out of the way, he just sorta turned to the side like he knew it wouldn’t connect. Then later he broke free from the Kraken’s hold by tearing apart its tentacle like it was nothing. Whoever this guy is, he’s powerful there’s no doubt about that.” Wise summarized. Only for Koleda to interrupt him.

“It’s not a guy.” Koleda stated.

Looking at the girl, Wise gave her a slightly serious expression. “Oh, so it confirmed then?” He asked

Nodding her head to confirm his thoughts, she replied. “Yeah, me, Ben and that white haired soldier confirmed it in person. The Hollow Knight is an Ethereal designated by the Defense Force as a lethal threat. not only was it capable of absorbing ether vapor, it also was able to breathe it. And-“ looking down at her bandages, Koleda massaged her bandages. “He didn’t feel human. I don’t know why, but that ethereal isn’t like the rest. It saved my life and helped us fight the Kraken like an intelligent construct. Its battle IQ was off the charts. It’s like it knew what our plans were and what needed to be done to take out the Kraken. Honestly, when Grace decided to upgrade our gear when we found out the enemies we would be facing in the future, the more I thought about it the more I thought that she was right to take her away.”

“Huh? Take who away Koleda?” Belle questioned, her question however would piss Koleda off once again.

With an awkward laugh, Ben tried to pat Koleda down whilst answering Belle’s question. “It’s complicated, but Grace will no longer be working for Belobog Industries full time.” The cooking revealed caused the proxies to recoil in shock, but before the two can ask for the details, Ben held his paw up. “It’s classified and we are not able to disclose any more information at this time.” Ben said, earning a click of the tongue by Koleda.

Leaning over to Wise, Belle whispered into his ear. “Oh that’s why she’s extra spicy today.” Wise nodding along but dared not say anything vocal. Now caught with the happenings of the world whilst he was out, he remembered his side quest.

“So did we ever figure out why that hollow formed at the Coral Reef and did it have anything to do with the escaped Ethereal Scott Outpost commissioned us to find?” Wise asked. Thoughts of the meeting surfaced from what felt like a month ago.

Recalling how upset Zhu Yuan was just yesterday, Qingyi shared the information with her friends. “We did actually find out the cause of the hollow expansion,” Qingyi said, which garnered everyone’s attention. “However, we were told not to disclose any information by the chief as the matter was considered resolved.” The revelation caused everyone to slump back down as they were successfully baited.

Miffed, Koleda, annoyed with the automaton, couldn’t hold back her snarky side. “Why would you tell us something like that if it ultimately didn’t matter? You just got our hopes up for nothing.”

In response, a small smug smile creeped onto Qingyi’s face. “Well,” she began. “We were told not to disclose any information, but as it so happens it’s been a while since I’ve had any maintenance and my audio systems have been glitching out recently. So it can’t really be held responsible if any possible information were to leak. Like say, a metric ton of ether barrels illegally being dumped into the waters of New Eridu that overtime leaked into the sea causing a Hollow Disaster.” The big reveal caused many of the agents to gasp in shock.

Resting his fingers under his chin, Wise could see how that could have gone unnoticed for so long. “Normally ether would evaporate into the atmosphere, but since it was under water, the adaptable aspect of ether bonds with the water rather than turning into its gaseous form.”

Ben then shared his thoughts on the matter immediately after Wise had finished his sentence. “Now that begs the question as to who illegally dumped the ether. At Belobog we have to adhere to local laws and regulations when we dispose of our waste products. All of which can get very expensive.” Ben said as he recounted the company’s finances.

Continuing with her info leak, Qingyi spilled some rather corrupted practices. Looking annoyed she said, “as it so happens, the illegal dumping was by multiple T.O.P.S affiliated companies. All of which bribed their way into Pub Sec and the press as to not take any action. So this whole ordeal was essentially swept under the rug.”

“What? Those no good! Gah!” Koleda said as she screamed into a couch pillow.
Ben patted her shoulder to calm her down as he too wished to express his dismay.
“So a bunch of people almost died because of their actions and they get to get away scott free huh?” Wise said with a sigh. “As much as I hate to say it, we can’t do anything about it now that it's swept under the rug.” Glancing over to Fairy then towards Qingyi, Wise had an idea. “Unless, let's say an untraceable super AI somehow managed to gain information on this event and anonymously leak it to every citizen's personal Interknot accounts,” he said smugly.

Seeing the vision, Belle supported the idea if it meant righting the wrongs of New Eridu.
Not amused, Qingyi crossed her arms as she loomed above the proxy. “Oh? Manager? Are you saying you are willing to commit a crime in front of an official Pub Sec Officer?” Qingyi said.

Wise sat there in silence as he truly believed Qingyi shared the idea of exposing T.O.P.S’s evil ways and giving them the punishments they deserved. Yet he should have known better as he had already spent ample time with the girl as she let a chuckle slip. “Joking, joking. I appreciate the effort, but not yet dear manager. Wait for me and Zhu Yuan to proceed m’kay?”
Nodding in acknowledgment, everyone sat around the room in silence until a growl rang out from Belle. Blushing slightly at being exposed by her body, she laughed it off as she rubbed her tummy. “Looks like it's about time for dinner. Is everyone staying for dinner? If that’s the case we can all get takeout from next door and watch a movie together.” Belle said as she clasped her hands together.

As the agents looked around the room at one another, they contemplated their plans for the rest of the night before smiling. “Yeah we can eat,” Ben said for him and Koleda. As the two made their way towards the door.
Humming along, Qingyi followed along with Belle, “I wonder if Waterfall Soup has any good tea.”

“Bro, I’m going to get you something easy on the stomach alright?” Belle said as she trailed behind Qingyi.

“Yeah, I think General Chop was working on a medicinal soup after last time. I’d say hopefully he made it tasty, but knowing him, it's always going to be tasty.” Wise said to a nodding Belle.

Turning her head away, Belle ominously said, “alright, well I hope you two have fun then.” Before closing the door behind them.

Puzzled, Wise couldn’t help but repeat her words. “Huh? Us two?” Just then Ellen stirred from her curled up position and crawled her way onto the proxy, stradling him in the process. “Ellen?” Wise whispered.

With a predatory smile, Ellen, now active, gently pinned him to his bed. “Well, well Proxy. Haven’t you ever wondered how exactly we found you? Don’t you recall seeing a certain something swimming across your face before blacking out.” Ellen said smugly.

“What do you mean?” Wise asked when all of a sudden he recalled seeing a shark tail swimming across his vision. “Oh! Wait, that was you Ellen? And here I thought I was about to get eaten. Did Belle call you to help me?” Wise said coolly, internally however he was losing his mind at the girl's actions.

Not satisfied, Ellen continued to tease the young man. “Mhm hmm. No actually, I just happened to be at Port Elpis because I needed inspiration for a make-up assignment I had for art class.” Ellen said as she rolled her eyes, not wanting to remember school stuff at this moment. “As I was just about to ask a fisherman to give me a fish so I can draw, that hollow formed around youl. Everyone in the area saw it happened, it was all the rage for a few hours. Shortly after a whole bunch of Pub Sec cruisers came motoring in including your rooster haired friend and the robot.”

Cutting her off, “their names are Qingyi and Zhu Yuan, Ellen.” Wise said.

Not caring in the slightest, the girl continued her story. “Me and my friends watched as multiple people and body bags came back to the port before an officer told us to leave. But seeing the worried look on that rooster haired one, I decided to offer my assistance. So after bidding my friends farewell, I dodged the cop and made my way to the red head. Seeing as we became acquainted after the whole Bringer incident, she suprisingly allowed me to help out with the search. Or more specifically-” Ellen explained as she poked her finger into his chest, “she only allowed me because you were the only one we couldn’t find.” Swaying her tail in between them she then said the most shocking fact of all. “Not only that, she figured that since I am a shark Thiren, not cool by the way. I could help search underwater. Luckily for her I am a good swimmer so I agreed. Besides, she also gave me a medal of honor so I don’t have to do gym class for a while. Although the attention is somewhat annoying.” Ellen mumbled.

Now seeing the missing part of the ending, Wise could only thank Ellen for her services. “Well i'm glad you saved me Ellen. Thank you, really.” Wise said with a smile. Unbeknownst to him, his smile was lethal to the girl as she hid her blush with her tail. “I’m not sure how I could repay you, but say the word and I'll do my best.”

Oh you have no idea. Ellen thought. Leaning back, she showed her toothy grin before saying, “Oh my services weren’t free proxy. I have just the thing I want you to do for me. So, you better be prepared otherwise I might take a bite out of you~” Ellen said as she got off of him and joined the rest downstairs, ready to place her own order.

Chapter Text

Now with a large variety of various noodle soups in hand, the assembled friends enjoyed a movie night in Random Play’s staff room. With the featured film for the night being Invasion: Next Gen, those who would normally stay quiet during the film couldn’t help, but find it more entertaining by commenting on certain scenes and sharing their ideas of how they would dispatch each ethereal. Those who preferred a more traditional and quiet viewing experience didn’t mind as much as they enjoyed seeing their comrades enjoy the moment, especially after their most recent victory. As the movie came to an end, so did everyone's ability to stay at Random Play. The first to leave was Ben and Koleda who had to get up early for a construction project the next morning, the next was Qingyi who had used up her last vacation day to check up on Wise and with her battery running low, she booked it towards the now fixed metro. That leaves just Ellen all alone with the proxy siblings. After helping them clean up a bit, Ellen too leaves after bidding the two farewell. Not after reminding the two that she would be coming back tomorrow for business.

After seeing Ellen off, Belle then turned towards her brother ready to check up on his condition. “Wise, how are you feeling?” Belle said as she brushed her fingers on his bandaged body.

Responding to his sister, Wise turned to give her a soft smile. “Actually not too bad, I thought I'd be in more pain, all things considered.” Wise said as he headed for the stairs.

Not wanting her brother to leave just yet, Belle struggled to keep her questions to herself as she blurted out a thought that haunted her since Ben told her of Wise’s fate. Thinking about what Wise mentioned in the hospital, she blurted out a quiet question. “Wise, are you the Hollow Knight?”

Upon hearing his sister’s question, Wise stopped dead in his tracks as if he was frozen in time. Normally he would have joked along with his sister at such a question, but this time it had shook him greatly. Just as he was starting to believe that he was actually hallucinating at the thought of the idea, he turned back towards his sister. “I don’t think so Belle, what would make you say that anyways?” He responded.

Turning around to make sure the coast was clear as if there were hidden listeners, Belle finally mustered up the courage to continue. “When Ellen and Qingyi found you, you weren’t hurt that badly. Minor fractures and some light bruises was all that we found. But you’re ok now. You’re ok after taking a hit that even Ben couldn’t take Wise.” Walking towards the staff room, Belle motioned for her brother to follow to which he did.

After stepping in and closing the door behind them, Belle sat in her chair in front of the H.D.D and pulled up some logs and notes with the help from Fairy. Pointing to one in particular, Belle looked Wise dead in his eyes. “This is from when I went into the Hollow.” Belle said. On the screen the biosignature of two Ethereals showed up. One was gargantuan which was obviously the Kraken and the other was a much smaller signature that harbored an large, but miniscule amount of Ether in comparison to the Kraken.

“The Kraken and the Hollow Knight huh? Good work in gathering this intel Belle, it should be useful moving forward.” Wise said as he read over the notes and aerial footage. When he looked back towards Belle however, she did not show a smile. Rather she brought up another program. A map showing the layout of the battlefield.

“Master, I would like to point out that I was the one who put together the diagram.” Fairy said.

Ignoring the Ai, Belle then clicked an arrow key showing an ether signature in the water before turning towards Wise. “Right there-” she pointed, “right there is where the Hollow Knight was last seen and afterwards-,” flipping to the next slide, “this is where we found you after the Hollow disappeared.” Belle said, putting the two slides up side by side she then turned to examine her brother.

Wise stood there in silence as he eyed the location of his rescue and then towards the location of the Knight. It wasn’t an exact match, but it was rather close. If he would have to estimate the distance, it would be about half a mile away from the Knight’s last position. Turning back to Belle, her suspicious eyes melted his ability to keep things to himself. Unable to resist his sister’s gaze, Wise finally gave in.

“Belle, for a while now I've been having nightmares. They don’t happen all the time, but everytime they do, something big happens soon after. The Sixth Street hollow, the coastal reef. On both occasions I've had a dream the night before and on both occasions a hollow has appeared.” Wise said as he sat on the couch.

Getting up from her chair and sitting next to Wise, Belle wrapped her arms around him. Squeezing tightly, Belle mumbled a few words of encouragement. “I believe you bro, whatevers going on, we’ll get through this together, like always.” Sitting in silence, Wise returned her hug until the creaking sound of the door opened. Turning towards the noise, the two siblings watched as a tired looking Eos came walking in with a small bag in hand. Seeing the two proxies on the couch, Eos perked up and gave them an energetic wave before waddling over excitedly. Specifically towards Wise.

Leaning over, Wise pet his head firmly. “Hey there Eos, where have you been lately?” Wise said.

Laughing, Belle teased the little robot, “were you out at Port Elpis again with Boxboo? I’ve noticed you two getting awfully chummy.” Belle said, to which Eos firmly denied. Not wanting the attention on himself, he then whipped out an old battery and presented it to the two.

Picking it up and observing it in his hands Wise twirled the battery. “This is a sea soaked battery?” Wise said. Fishing at Port Elpis for a day, Wise remembered saving a few bangboo who wished to fish up old batteries as they apparently had a unique flavor.

“Eh nah, eh eh nah!” (That’s right, my friends recommended them to me!) Eos said before heading back upstairs for a proper recharge.

Smiling warmly at the retreating bangboo, rested her chin on her palm. “He’s been getting more active, you know? Making friends, smiling and playing. Seems our lives are changing in more ways than one.” Belle explained.

However, Wise was not listening. No, he was more focused on the ether battery in his fingers. With a growling stomach his face grew hotter and his hunger deepened. Unconsciously he opened his mouth and breathed in. At first it was a light inhale, one that grew slightly stronger over time.

“Wise?” Belle questioned. Seeing Wise stare off into space while holding a battery was strange, but didn’t immediately alarm her. It was the fact that he was still inhaling for an impossibly long time. As she watched her brother continue to be weird her attention then focused onto the battery as it then began to emmit a slight glow. Widening her eyes she then witnessed as a miniscule amount of ether rose up from the battery and trailed into her brother's mouth.

At the same time Wise’s pupils too began to glow. Afterwards, once the battery was sucked dry of all of its remaining ether, Wise snapped out of his trance. With a sweet taste in his mouth he licked his lips. “Huh? Suddenly I don’t feel as hungry anymore,” he said. For once, he had finally felt like he had proper food, the kind that can satisfy his hunger cravings. “Hey Belle, I think i’m going to head to bed-” he paused.

Having just witnessed Wise absorb ether from a small battery, Belle shot up and put some distance between her and him. Glancing at one of the H.D.D monitors, she watched a quick recording of the Hollow Knight absorbing ether to power itself. Returning her eyes on her brother, she caught a glimpse at his now glowing green eyes. When her brother finally snapped out of it and began to address her, she backed away in fear when he got up to approach her.

“Belle?” he questioned. No response was given. Suddenly, Belle found it hard to respond as she felt her mouth was dry. No words could find their way out as her mind raced.

As Wise took a step towards her with a concerned look on her face, she shot up her hand, motioning him to stop. Seeing this, Wise halted to a stop as he sensed something wrong. “Belle? What’s wrong?” He said, as he made to take another step forward, he paused as he saw his sister get visibly more shaken. In the end he decided to back away and sit back down until Belle calmed down.

After stabilizing her shaky breathing and calming her thoughts, Belle hesitantly and carefully approached her brother. Motioning for Fairy to be ready at any moment, Belle sat at the other end of the couch before breaking the elephant in the room.

“Wise, what was that just now?” Belle asked. Being careful with her questions, she did her best not to ask anything that would set him off.

Oblivious, Wise was unsure of what she meant. “What was what, Belle? One moment we were having a moment and the next you just shot up out of your seat. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’ve just seen a monster.” He joked, hoping to calm his sister down. That plan however backfired as her shoulders tensed.

Carefully, Belle motioned for Fairy to play a certain clip as she continued to grill her brother. “Bro, you absorbed the ether from the battery. Just like how the Hollow Knight absorbs ether.” She said; pointing to the H.D.D Fairy replayed the scene where the Knight sucked up an entire terrain of ether mist before breathing it back out as an attack.

Following her finger, Wise was wordless as he watched the monitor. Switching his focus back and forth between his scared sister and the monitor, his mind began to fry. With many questions and concerns, he ultimately landed on one question to say. “I’m the Hollow Knight?”

Now with the big question out in the open, Belle could only nod her head along to confirm her theory. “Wise, it's not concrete, but it’s also highly likely considering the signs,” she said. Pointing at one of her three fingers, she listed off her ideas. “First, when the Sixth Street Hollow happened, you were the only one left behind with viscous Ethereals yet you lived. Second, you survived being struck by an attack you should have been crushed by, what with your string bean body. And finally, but most importantly. You absorbed Ether and your eyes are glowing!” Belle exclaimed as she whipped out her phone camera before shoving it into his face.

There Wise can see the source of Belle’s fears. Bringing up a hand to his face, he pulled back his eyelid as he leaned closer. Blinking slowly, he then retreated back to his original position, sitting in thought. Taking a deep breath, he then asked Belle for guidance. “Well, I'm definitely not normal anymore, that's for sure. But I've been able to think clearly, Belle. I’ve changed, but I promise you I'm not feral like regular ethereals. I’m still me. Otherwise, I would have attacked you since I started to change.”

Still a bit wary, Belle could see the truth in his words. Despite the danger of the unknown, it was still her brother and after witnessing what he can do up close, they now had a powerful trump card against the people who took away their teacher. Assuming they can understand how to wield this power of course. Taking a deep breath herself, she then closed the distance. Checking out his glowing eyes herself she then began to grill her bro. “So… how long has this been going on for?” She asked.

Finally relieved to have his sister no longer look at him like a monster, he thought back to when it all started. “It probably had something to do with the dreams I've been having. So probably after the Bringer incident. Specifcally that same night.” He said. Then both siblings sat on the couch and struck the same thinking pose, trying to recall what happened that night. What exactly did they do differently that night compared to every other operation?

Then the idea struck them, “the explosion!” they said in unison. Smiling with content the two remembered being a tad reckless as they searched for answers from a retreating Bringer and ended up being caught in the explosion.

“Wait so, why did you get some cool Etheral powers but I didn’t?” Belle asked, slightly disappointed.

“Well uh-” Wise tried to respond, but in reality he didn’t know the reason either. “It could have been because I shielded you from the blast and some of that yellow stuff got on me?” he tried to explain.

Belle immediately dismissed the idea however, “if that were the case then the vapor would have still affected me by seeping into my skin or something. There has to be another reason, a contributing factor.”

Agreeing with Belle, Wise couldn’t help but be impressed with his sister’s deductive reasoning. “Humph, since when did you become so sharp?” Wise joked.

Feighing hurt, Belle punched him in the arm. “You don’t become the best Proxy in New Eridu by being dumb bro.”

As the two settled down from their sibling squabble, Wise then noticed something or rather the absence of something. “Hey, have you noticed that Fairy hasn’t been all that talkative lately? And not because of the whole coma thing I mean.”

Thinking back on the times she would converse with Fairy she did recognize a pattern. “Now that you’ve mentioned it, she’s less talkative nowadays when it comes to you.”

“Huh, do you have anything to say Fairy?” Wise asked, curious as to how the Ai would resond.

Unexpectedly an old line from their first meeting resurfaced. “According to the user agreement, I am unauthorized to answer this question. You will receive an answer at the appropriate time and place.”

Aghast, Belle threw her head back. “Ah there it is again. Looks like she won’t be too helpful.”

“Yes, but she does know something. That’s as much as we can ask for I guess.” Wise said. Unbeknownst to him, his eyes began to lose their glow.

Catching this, Belle informed her brother, “hey bro, your eyes aren’t glowing anymore. Does this mean you want more ether or?”

"Actually no, it seems that the little amount in the battery settled the hunger pains I've been having, but I think we should do some more testing to learn more about my body.” Wise said as he looked at the time.

Pumping her fist in mild excitement, Belle was ready to support her brother any way she could. “Alright! Into the hollows we go to learn about your cool new powers!” Belle exclaimed as she sat in her desk chair.

“Whoa there you little Gremlin, we can do it later. Remember Ellen said she’s coming by tomorrow for business. So we should head on to bed and rest up for the night.” Wise explained. Truthfully, he himself was still mentally exhausted from his earlier nightmare.

Breathing out in exasperation Belle went limp at having her mood interrupted, but agreed regardless. “He practically has women throwing themselves at him and he still thinks it's for business.” she mumbled underneath her breath.

“Did you say something?” Wise responded as he settled down on the couch. “By the way, im going to get comfortable and have Fairy show me some data for a bit before I head to bed. You should lock your door tonight though, you know, just in case.”

A quick “nothing” escaped her lips as she ran out the door. Popping her head back into the staff area, she bid Wise goodnight before heading upstairs. As she walked towards her room, she closed and locked the door behind her before whipping out her phone. Scrolling through her contacts, she then thought about the people closest to her. Right now she was afraid, afraid of what was happening in her life right now. Afraid that her brother was this famous Ethereal/hero that could literally tear her apart in seconds. Afraid that her brother wasn’t really in there. So as assurance for now, she needed company, someone that could help her when she needed it. After a bit of scrolling, she then pressed on the profile of one of her friends and pressed the call button.

With a few seconds that felt like hours, a tired voice then came through. “Belle? We aren’t due for a late night call for another hour, not that I don’t want to do it early mind you.”

“I need you! Now!” Belle whispered in an urgent tone.

“W-wah!” The voice cried out in embarrassment.

“Corin, I want to have a sleepover now and I need you to bring your weapon just in case. I may be in danger tonight.” Belle said.

“Danger? What do you mean?” Corin said in a serious tone.

“I-” Belle began, however thinking about what would happen to Wise if she shared this knowledge caused her to stop. “I can’t tell you too much Corin, I want to, but right now I can’t. I just need someone by my side tonight.”

Used to catering to her master’s whims and orders, Corin didn’t pry for more information. Instead, she could only do her best to serve her friends as best she can. “Alright Proxy, i’ll hurry along to the metro before they close and see you in twenty minutes! See you soon!” Corin said. The sound of rustling could be heard in the background, the sound of the girl gathering her things as she changed into outdoor clothes.

Hanging up the phone, Belle let her arm fall to the ground, yet she clung onto her phone like a saftey rope. Glancing across the room to the small mirror on her desk, she looked at her reflection. She looked at her tear stained face as she held back the waterworks. Letting out a light laugh, she couldn’t believe what she just did. “Heh, I’m the worst sister in the world,” she said as she slid down the door.

On the other side of the door Wise stood silent, his eyes closed as his head hung low. Sad that he made his sister feel unsafe. On one hand he completely understood and if he were in her shoes, he would have made the same call. But regardles, the thought that he wasn’t able to make her feel safe stung a bit. Wordlessly, he waddled into his room. Making sure he locked the door behind him, he then gently layed down his bed and began looking out the window towards the moon. Dwelling on the piece of information he found as well as the fragmented memories he had, he slowly drifted off to sleep.

The very next day

As the sun shone through the window of his room, Wise immediately sat up. Something was different. He thought. Not only did he not experience a nightmare last night, but he woke up feeling better than ever. It was as if he had been living through a long dream only to wake up past noon. Yet with the events of yesterday still on his mind, he got up from his bed and got dressed in his usual attire. Brushing up and washing his face, Wise was ready to start the day right. Heading downstairs to the Random Play section of his home he noticed a bunch of boxes stacked in the corner. Ah, that new shipment of movies came in. Poor Belle, she probably couldn’t deal with them with me gone. He thought. Working around the shop, he continued to put away tapes, sweep the floor, check inventory as well as make a list of whoever had overdue tapes.

“Alright, that should be everything taken care of for the day and now we wait,” he said as he went to flip over the sign. As he was at the door, he noticed general chop unloading ingredients from a delivery truck. “Strange, General Chop doesn’t restock unless it’s early morning.” He said as he checked his phone.

Recoiling slightly, he was shocked to find out the time was 6:14 in the morning. Strange. I never wake up this early even on my regular sleep schedule. Wise thought. Seeing as he had finished the entire morning shift worth of work, he decided to give the old chef a hand.

Jogging up to the chef, Wise picked up a crate of cabbages as he greeted him. “General Chop, good morning, let me help you with these.”

Perking up at the sight of him, General Chop enthusiastically returned the greeting as he came back for another load. “Wise my boy! Good morning to you too. I’m glad to see you doing better already, but take it easy alright? We don’t want you passing out again.” General chop said as he slung over two bags of onions over his shoulders.

“Nonsense, I’m feeling better than ever actually. It must have been your medicinal dumpling soup. Not only was it sweet, but also savory. It’s probably why I woke up so early full of energy.” Wise complimented as he picked up another crate.

Coming back out, Chop layed out a few plates in front of a seat. “Wise, why don’t I make you some breakfast for helping me out today? It’s the least I can do,” General chop said eagerly.

“You don’t have to, I just happened to catch you at the right time, General Chop.” Wise responded. Truthfully he wanted to test whether his abilities from yesterday were replicable.

“Nonsense! You’ve helped me and you’re still injured. You need to eat up and rest plenty to regain your strength, boy!” Chop lectured. Knowing that he would never win a fight against his elders, Wise reluctantly agreed to sit down for a meal.

However, his antisocial tendencies left him in dire straits once again as he has no clue how to start a conversation. With general chop preparing a bowl of noodles for him, he asked some common questions. “So, uh General Chop, what’s been going on lately?”

Without batting an eye, General Chip countries to expertly prepare a dish as he made conversation. “Not much actually, besides that one video on the interknot about the Hollow Knight fighting another Ethereal, there’s barely anything else anyone would talk about. But after seeing the video myself, I can’t blame them. Oh did I ever tell you I was there when he was first spotted? Yep I even saved him too. Jumped on the back of a nasty Ethereal at that.”

Hearing the chef’s story, memories of the event returned to Wise in droves. From helping an old woman to saving a kid. He began to remember his first ever transformation. He remembered the power, the speed, the reflexes. Everything he’s seen in action movies, he could actually do with that powerful body. If he could actually learn to use that strength, he and Belle could look for their teacher a lot faster. All while hiding their identity. After all, who would think to compare an ethereal with a person?

Not noticing General Chop calling to him, he didn’t snap out of his inner thoughts until he felt the steam of the noodle soup in front of him warm up his nose.

“Hello, Earth to Wise? You still with us?” General Chop repeated.

Blinking rapidly, Wise straightened up in his seat before responding. “Huh? Oh sorry but that, lost in thought. Thanks for the food, I’ll dig in right now.” Wise said as he snapped his chopsticks.

“Take your time, the food is still hot. For a moment there. I was afraid I’d have to call for help.” General Chop laughed heartily. As the two made small talk more and more people began to walk the street as time went on. Now after an hour of conversation. Wise bid his farewell and headed back to the shop.

Seeing as he still had some time, he decided to open the shop early and sat behind the counter, looking over expenses. Once Belle woke up she and Corin came down together. Smiling like a charming prince, he waved at the two. “Oh? Good morning Corin, glad to have you with us tonight.”

Blushing slightly, Corin eagerly bowed. “M-m-morning master proxy. Thank you for having me tonight, I was just having a sleepover with master Belle.” Corin said only to have her cheeks pinched from behind.

“Nuh- uh. None of that master talk when it’s just us. We’re friends, remember?” Belle scolded.

“Y-yes Belle.” Corin obediently responded.

Taking a look around the once messy room, Belle curiously asked her brother, “bro did you set up the shop this morning?”

Nodding his head in pride, Wise wordlessly went back to his paperwork. “Huh, alright then-“ Belle said with the clap of her hand. “Thanks for coming by Corin, I’ll talk to you soon.” Belle said as she walked over to open the front door.

“It was my pleasure, I’ll talk to you soon. Oh and bye to you too, manager!” Corin said cutely before scurrying out the door.

Now alone, Belle made sure no one else was in the shop before tossing Wise an object. “Bro are you still doing alright? You want some ether?”

Inspecting the object in his hand, it turned out to be a brand new ether battery. Looking back up to his sister, he was met with a supportive smile. Sighing, Wise then brought it up to his face and plopped it in his mouth. Before he could start chewing, Belle threw herself on him with outstretched arms.

“Bro! What are you doing? Spit it out!” Belle said in a hurry.

Upon hearing this, Wise quickly spat out the battery before questioning the girl. “What? How else am I supposed to absorb it without eating it?” Wise asked.

Using her hands to explain the process, Belle pointed to the battery then her mouth. “You sorta just sucked the ether out of it, like breathing in smoke.”

Using her example wise then tried to suck the life out of the battery from a distance. No matter how hard he tried however, his efforts were fruitless. As he continued to follow Belle’s instructions, the two didn’t notice as Ellen walked through the door.

Catching the siblings in the act, she was contemplating whether or not she should come back later. Seeing Ellen, Wise put away the battery before coughing in his hand. “Ahaha, Ellen, how are you?” Wise said as he tried to make her forget what she just saw.

Watching the siblings in amusement Ellen walked towards their private quarters. “Good. School let out early so I need your help. Be right back, I’m going to go get changed into my uniform.” Before the two could protest someone just barging into their home, Ellen turned around and struck a cute pose, quickly silencing the two.

As the shark left the two, Belle turned to her brother, “bro don’t fumble this one.” Belle whispered.

“What? Fumble? What am I fumbling?” Wise responded. His only response was a groan from Belle as she went to boot up the H.D.D.

As Ellen returned to the shop, Wise escorted her to the back room where she requested their help in finding an item for a client. Little did they know it would soon turn into a fiasco where the proxies would have to cover up Ellen’s secret identity as a hollow raider as her friends had to share a call with the agent during a hollow dive.

“Heyo, nom nom shark. Are you there? Helloooo.” Ruby said, her voice showing signs of irritation.

Having finished taking down a group of Ethereals, Ellen finally had the chance to hear her name being called. “Huh? Oh yeah. What is it?”

“We asked you if you had any ideas you wanted to input. Remember Ellen, this is a group project. We’ll have to present this together when our turn comes so you should participate.” Mona responded.

“Ooh uh yeah whatever. Actually, I’m kinda busy with my part time job, my coworker is actually calling me so I’ll have to talk to you guys later.” Ellen responded as she hung up the call.

“Hey Ellen, don’t you think you should take a break from work if you have such a big assignment coming up?” Wise asked.

“Hmm it’s not that important. Regardless of whether I do well in school, I already know what I’m going to do in the future.” Ellen said as she slashed down on a goblin.

Turning to look at his sister in worry, the two had a wordless conversation. Both considered passing a message on to Lycaon, but reconsidered it as it was Ellen they were dealing with.

On the third day of looking for the client's personal bangboo, the three would unexpectedly encounter a group of people in the hollows. That group being Ellen’s friends as they were trapped in a corner of the room. A laser fence being the only thing separating them from being torn to shreds by the wild ethereals.

“Ellen.” Wise began only to be cut off by the agent.

“Already on it.” Ellen said as she entered her frenzy state. Dashing towards the lone Hati, Ellen swiped at it with her giant scissors, the sharpness of her weapon cut through the air itself. Upon landing the hit, her blade easily cut through the Ethereal’s armor and cut its eye causing it to leak blood. Not only was this a testament to her weapon’s quality, but also to her skills as a combatant. Enraged, the Hati did not flinch at the attack, but rather sacrificed its body in order to charge directly towards the shark girl and landed a solid hit. As Ellen was sent flying into a wall, her body caused it to indent under the force of the attack causing Ellen to discharge a bit of extra saliva. However, the kick ass shark didn’t allow her friends nor her enemies to hear her scream. Rather, Ellen kicked off the wall and slashed the Hati multiple times from above before landing behind the ethereal. Not letting up, she used her powerful legs to kick the Ethereal in its hindleg, staggering it in the process. Spinning in place to gain momentum, Ellen then sent an upwards strike towards the Ethereal’s vulnerable underbelly. As a result her blade cleanly sliced upwards, cutting the Hati in half. Swinging her scissors in front of her, she got rid of the blood on them.

Gasping at the sudden action, the girls were shocked as their usually lazy friend dashed around the battlefield tearing apart the enemy.

“Omg that’s Ellen? Is this real?” Lynn said as she no longer shook in fear.

“WOW, she’s like a void hunter.” Mona awed.

“Guys remind me not to piss her off.” Ruby cowered.

Exchanging glances, the three girls wordlessly came to the same conclusion and made a pact that they would protect their friends secret identity.

Strolling up the girls, Wise disabled the laser grid protecting them as Ellen let them have it.

“So what were you guys thinking entering a hollow by yourselves?” Ellen started.

Panicked, Ruby came up with a quick lie. “We were, uh, sightseeing! Yeah sightseeing, going on a walk. Ehehehe.”

Not having any of it, Ellen turned to walk away. “Oh, sorry for interrupting then. Carry on.” Ellen said.

This action would cause all the girls to panic this time as they practically pounced on their friend. “No! Wait, don't go! Uhh, you tell her Lynn.” Ruby said as she handed off the explanation to their smart friend.

Sighing in disappointment, Lynn opted for telling the truth. “We were worried about you Ellen. We were worried that your boss was working you too hard.”

Hearing this, Ellen’s mood perked up a tad bit despite her overall sour mood of not only almost losing her friends, but also the fact that her identity got exposed. “Look guys, I appreciate it, but-“Ellen said before being cut off.

“Also we totally thought that manager guy you were working with was a total playboy,” Ruby casually mentioned.

The comment catching Ellen and Eos off guard froze the two. “Huh?” Ellen said.

This time Mona pushed Ruby out of the way to gain the girl’s attention. “Yeah seriously, when we came by the shop and saw him the first time, we were like whoa he’s hot. We can see why Ellen works for him now. Then we noticed that you haven’t been hanging out with us recently and that you always came to school the next day completely exhausted-“ Mona said.

“So we thought maybe that boss of yours has been taking advantage of his position and gave you “extra shifts” after hours.” Ruby said as if she was convinced that was happening. In the background Lynn and Mona nodded along.

Completely red in the face Ellen had no clue how to respond, Belle in the background started laughing her ass off. The sound of laughter leaked from Eos’s speakers.

Without any coherent thought, Ellen exploded in passive rage. “Who do you think I am? I’m not some kind of sloozy that would sell myself out for a few extra Dennie’s. Also, the manager isn’t that kind of guy! He’s a deer, a herbivore. The day he becomes a carnivore is the day New Eridu falls!” Ellen yelled, her breath labored. Like sheep, the three girls huddled together for protection from the big bad shark. Yet after the little rant, the three girls also exchanged smug grins for they had now found a non sugar related weakness of the mythical nom nom shark.

After a moment of calming down, Wise escorted the girls out of the hollow where they were promptly caught by a pub sec officer in waiting. Using this opportunity to flee, Wise piloted Eos back to random play before shutting down the H.D.D

“Phew,” he said. Mentally exhausted from unexpectedly dealing with teenagers, he calmly took a sip of water before a knock came from the back parking lot. “Oh what now, Belle!” He yelled.

“On it bro!” Belle responded from her seat. Getting up, she proceeded to open the back door before moving out of the way quickly. Gasping in shock, she brought up her hands to cover her mouth. In came Anby carrying an unconscious, but otherwise ok Soldier 11 along with the blond sniper from Port Elpis.

Jumping up from his chair, Wise hurriedly went to the couch to move the pillows to one side. “Anby! What happened to Soldier 11. Is she alright?” Wise said

Conflicted, Anby kept her silence. An unusual act from the girl. “Anby?” Belle asked. “Does this have anything to do with those commissions the other day?”

“Commissions? What commissions?” Wise asked.

“Anby came to me the day Ellen brought you back home Wise. She was looking for something or someone, but wouldn’t tell me any details. She was willing to pay so I didn’t turn her down.” Belle responded.

After finishing settling down the white haired girl, Anby properly addressed the proxies. “I’m sorry, now is not the time for explanations. I promise you, when this is all over, I’ll tell you everything. But for now, I need you to allow Soldier 11 safe refuge here.” Anby pleaded.

Stepping forward to rest his hands on her shoulders, Wise tried his best to give the girl reassurance. “It’s alright Anby, just know that me and Belle will be right here waiting for you. You can rely on us. You’re important to us after all.” Wise said in the most friendly way possible.

Hearing this, Anby looked away to hide her blush. Yet she couldn’t hide the small smile that crept onto her face. Just then Wise noticed the blonde that sat beside Soldier 11.

“Oh bro, this was the soldier that fought by 11’s side in that hollow. Her name is-“

“Charon.” Wise said, shocking the two. Extending his hand to greet the women, he gave her a polite smile. “It’s good to see you doing well after all these years.”

“Huh? Bro? You know this woman?” Bell asked as she tried to recall when they would have met the beauty.

“That's right, she was one of our first customers after all Belle. Back when we started off as proxies, she was the one with the harmonica. Once again, I’m glad to see that you’re back on your feet Charon.” Wise said happily.

With her visor going from yellow to pink and back to yellow, the blonde grew a smile as she recalled those events. “Aha, so you were the proxies from back then. I thought your voices sounded familiar. It was thanks to you two that I had the courage to be apart of Obol Squad.” Trigger said as she fumbled to find and shake Wise’s hand. “Although, now that our paths have crossed once more, it’s time for you two to learn my true name. Or codename at least. Please call me Trigger.”

Later that day

After having watched Soldier 11 wake up from her coma and finding a secret videotape from Anby, soldier 11 made her way to the hollows to assist Anby. After pacing around back and forth the two proxies were delighted to find out that their friends had made it back safely from their quest. After a bit of r&r and some farewells, Soldier 11 returned to speak with Wise in private after a week on duty.

Heading to the parking lot Wise waited patiently and happily for Soldier 11 to find her words and confide in him. When he did however, he was caught off guard by the mood of the conversation.

“Crimson Chin. No, wait- your name, what was it again?” soldier 11 asked as she messaged her temple, with her memories now in fragments she has found hard to maintain the image of a perfect soldier. Thus she fumbled on a few missions and no longer trusted her own abilities when given important tasks by her superiors.

Understanding the nature of her condition, Wise spoke with her slowly and carefully. “Wise. My name is Wise. It will always be Wise and no matter how many times I have to say it, I’ll constantly remind you every time you forget.” Wise said as he reached for her hand.

Standing there, 11 repeated his name over and over again like a mantra. “W-wise. Wise. Wise? Wise! That’s it, if it’s you. As long as you don’t abandon me, as long as you never leave. If I can at least be of use to you, then maybe my life would have meaning.” 11 said as she fought back tears.

Happy that the girl thought of him so highly, Wise couldn’t help but smile, but still kept enough composure to remind her of the important matters. “No, Soldier 11. Your life is all yours, I won’t throw you away ever, but you need to know that everything you could do is because of you. You’re skills, you’re experiences. Even if you don’t remember, everything you’ve ever experienced will always be inside of you. So you should fight for you. But remember that if you ever need a place to rest from your worries, we’ll always have a warm cozy place for you here at Random play.”

Hearing this, the dams on 11’s eyes slightly broke due to how touched she was at his words. Finally finding her way to him and securing a spot as an indisposable person in his life made the weight she was carrying disappear. Leaning forward and giving him a breathtaking smile, Soldier 11 returned to Trigger who had been waiting inside after bidding her farewells.

As Wise followed after the retreating girl he watched as the metal door closed behind hers walking up to the space she used to occupy, he gently rested the palm of his hand on the door before saying, “good luck, Harin.”

Entering the store, he failed to spot both Belle and Anby sneaking around on the roof, spying on the scene below. Shaking Anby by the shoulders, Belle blushed as she gushed at the scene.

“Oh my gosh, Anby! I am going to die from a sugar crash. That was so sweet! That was practically a love confession! Gag!” Belle said as she hugged herself silly.

Silently munching on her burger, Anby went to the other side of the roof as she watched her sister make to leave Sixth Street. Truthfully, she was happy that her sister wasn’t mentally broken, on the other hand she now had a new thought occupying her battle trained mind. I’m sorry sister, but this isn’t a battle I can let you win. Not when there is so much at stake. She thought as she took another bite of her sandwich.

In the shop Wise waited for his sister to show up from who knows god where as he manned the counter. Not a minute later Belle came by as Anby bid her farewell saying something about Nicole being mad about her absence lately.

Seeing that it was a slow day, Wise went to close the shop early by flipping over the open sign before speaking to his sister. “Well, that was a good few days, those commissions should be enough for this month's electric bills.” Wise said in satisfaction.

Coming in from upstairs Belle came charging into the main shop as she saw the closed sign. Excitedly she asked Wise if it was time. “Bro! We’re set for this month right?” He nodded. “And we have no more commission?” Another nod followed. Now bursting with overenthuesiasm, Belle spun around in place then struck a pose as she pointed a single finger towards the ceiling. “Does. That. Mean. It’s. Time?” She said as she built up the suspense with each word.

Before Wise could respond however, Ellen came walking in through the door. Ah, I should have locked it. Wise thought.

“Hey Proxy, I'm here to cash in on my favor.” Ellen said nonchalantly. The response caused Belle to crumble to the ground.

“Oh come on man!” The girl whined. Standing up Belle went to the back to sulk.

Watching her disappear, Wise then addressed the girl. “Ellen, what do you mean? Didn’t we help you with your request not too long ago?”

Giving him a devilish smile, ELlen bared her razor sharp teeth for all to see as she closed the distance between them. “Oh proxy, that was just work. Work that I paid you for. No, that wasn’t the favor. Rather its something personal. Something only you can give me.” Ellen said as she stood before the proxy.

Gulping in fear, Wise was careful with his next words “Ahem, well. Whatever it is you need Ellen. Me and Belle would do our best to help you however we can. Whether you need to find something else in the hollows or navigate a particularly dangerous one, we got your back-” Wise said before the tips of her tail shushed him before wrapping itself around his waist.

“No proxy. This isn’t hollow related. It’s personal. I want you proxy. And I will get you. After all, you owe me your life.” Ellen said as she leaned closer.

Chapter Text

Up in Belle’s bedroom, Wise and Ellen grunted with every motion. Panting, Wise collapsed onto the bed, his body covered in sweat.

“Come on, proxy. We’re not even close to done.” Ellen said as she readied herself. Strapping in, Belle tuned her instrument to her liking.

“Ok. But, why exactly did you want us to play in a band for you again?” Wise said. Sitting back up after carrying some heavy sound equipment, continuing, he proceeded to plug in jack after jack as he prepared the speaker.

Unwrapping a lollipop, Ellen popped the treat in her mouth before giving the full explanation. “I failed my music arts class. Apparently playing only the triangle doesn’t count,so I’m at risk of failing.” Ellen said as she rolled her eyes.

“Ok, but where does that leave us?” Belle said as she strummed a few notes. Happy with the sounds, she continued to slightly adjust her guitar.

Pulling the lollipop out of her mouth, Ellen swirled it around in the air. “Well, there’s this school festival coming up that my school is hosting. And I can pass the class if I enter and impress my teacher in the talent show-“

“Which is why you need us to play with you.” Wise finished.

“That’s right. You two are like a jack of all trades, so I figured you knew how to play something and I was right.” Ellen said lazily. Eyeing the bed she then fell face first onto the covers.

Playing a slightly longer verse, Belle strummed the strings dramatically before hitting a pose. “But wait, if it’s a school talent show, then wouldn’t only students be allowed? Also why not have your friends help?” Belle asked.

Curling up into a ball, Ellen fought off her urge to sleep, yet found it to be difficult. “Unfortunately my friends aren’t a good fit for this competition. Ruby would try to take the spotlight, not to mention she’s tone deaf. Mona is clumsy so she’ll knock over the instruments and Lynn doesn’t know how to play anything.”

“I see. You have it tough too I suppose.” Wise said as he set up the last of the musical equipment. Walking over to the electric piano, he tested a few keys himself.

Noticing that the setup was complete, Ellen got up from the bed to pick up her drum sticks.

“Right, so I need to use that favor for this otherwise I won’t graduate. Which isn’t a problem, but I’ll get lectured by Rina if I don’t so…” Ellen explained.

Perking up and ready to jam out with a group for once, Belle was eager to start. “Alright so what kind of music should we do? Pop? Classical, rock?”

Thinking it over, Wise looked over Ellen’s outfit to guess the kind of music they would be playing. “I’m guessing we’re doing rock Ellen?”

Raising her shoulders, she said, “I don’t mind what you guys would do as long as it sounds good. So let’s try a few songs and call it a day.” Yawning, Ellen waited for the signal to start.

“Alright let’s try some Astra Yao songs to start this party!” Belle happily exclaimed. After watching a quick video and doing a few rounds of practice the three were ready to play a full song.

With Ellen on the drums, she set the tempo for the song like a pro. Complimenting her beat, Wise weaved a melody using his keyboard with skill not that of a beginner. And finally on vocals, Belle stuns her two band mates with her angelic voice as she flawlessly sings every lyric of the song as good if not better than the artist herself.

As soon as Belle finished the last of the lyrics and the beat began to die, Ellen wrapped an arm around the girl’s shoulder before lightly complimenting her.

“Wow proxy, didn’t think you had that in you.” Ellen said.

“Huh? What do you mean?” Belle responded.

Joining her other side, Wise gave her an impressed smile. “That was incredible Belle, really. If I didn’t know any better, I would say Astra Yao was actually here.”

Upon hearing the compliments, Belle’s face grew hotter in embarrassment. Yet more than that she felt confidence growing as she began to feel comfortable singing in front of others.

“Eheh, thanks guys. But let’s not get too complacent, there’s still other songs we can try.” Belle responded.

Nodding in agreement, the three went back to their positions and scrolled through their phones, looking for another song to play.

Thinking back about a recent purchase he made, Wise suggested a not so new song that was popular a while back. “How about we do that song from San-Z?”

Perking up, Ellen’s tail got active as it swung side to side.

Noticing this, Belle teased the girl. “Oh? Looks like Ellen likes that idea. As expected of our resident punk rock maid.”

Squinting her eyes, Ellen gave Belle a cold glare in response, the action silencing the girl immediately. “Eep! Let’s uh, get this party started then. Ahem.” Belle said as she coughed into her fist.

After finishing the song and repeating some lyrics to herself, Belle couldn’t quite get the lyrics down. Or rather the genre just wasn’t compatible with her angelic voice.

Sulking Belle insisted on trying again and again until Wise patted her on the back.

“There there sis. It’s alright. You can’t be good at everything. Otherwise it would be unfair for the rest of us. Let’s just settle with the Astra Yao song alright?” Wise consoled.

Behind him, Ellen stood up and crawled underneath Belle’s covers, ready for some shut eye.

Nodding along, Belle accepted the fact that she wasn’t as much of a musical god as she thought.

“Alright, so Ellen, where do we need to transport all of our instruments?” Belle said as she wondered if the Random Play car could carry the drums. Otherwise this would have to be two trips.

Lazy Ellen with her muffled voice, explained how it’ll work from beneath the covers. “We’ll borrow instruments from the music hall. All you gotta do is enjoy the festival. After all, the school’s going all out this year.”

Curious by what she meant, Belle turned to Wise with excitement in her eyes. He, being the prepared type, wanted to know more.

“So what are they doing that’s so big this year?” Wise said.

Yet there was no response from Ellen. Not immediately anyways. After a long few seconds she responded. “This year we got an anonymous donation to the school. A large sum of money was given for the sake of “making memories”” Ellen said.

“An anonymous donation huh? So rich tycoons giving generous donations do exist.” Belle said as she sat down to cuddle Ellen through the sheets.

Wise on the other hand was suspicious. Not just because it sounded too good to be true, but because he’s been in too many strange situations lately, that he was sure something was up.

Annoyed at being hugged, yet too lazy to push the girl off, Ellen continued to give her two dennies. “Some say it’s from a member of T.O.P.S others say it’s from a member of the Ravenlock family.”

“The Ravenlocks?” Belle asked, unfamiliar with the name.

“Yep, the Ravenlocks. A fallen noble family who’s trying to get back into the spotlight. Rumor is that they’re trying to join T.O.P.S” Ellen responded.

“So what can we expect from the festival?” Belle said as she spooned the girl.

“Oh the usual. Food stalls and trucks. Games organized by the students. And stage stuff like the talent show and plays.” Ellen said as she drifted off to sleep.

“Ooh! Bro! Did you hear that? There’ll be all types of food!” Belle drooled. Images of fried noodles and various plates of meat dishes circled around her head.

Smiling with a light laugh, Wise thought about their expenses from earlier and they did turn quite a profit recently. Seeing that, he decided to share with Belle the good news.

“I suppose we can afford to splurge quite a bit this month. Go ahead and eat whatever you want Belle.” wise said.

Hearing this, Belle got so excited at the prospect of having such a fun time, she began squeezing Ellen and shaking her around.

Noticing the time, Wise then made his exit from the room. “Well that was a good session, I’d see you out Ellen, but I’m feeling a bit sleepy. So good night girls.” He said.

A pair of “byes” came from behind him as he returned to his room. After getting into his nightwear and freshening up, he gently laid his head on the pillow and closed his eyes.

In Belle's room, the two girls joked around and snacked on Belle’s stash of candy. Ever since Wise was first hospitalized, the two and Corin had grown a lot closer with the maids being there to take care of Belle when she was too worried to bathe or eat properly.

“Ellen, you have to try this new chocolate that’s been trending lately! It’s so good!” Belle said, handing her a fat piece of chocolate.

Eyeing the candy in the girl’s hand, Ellen swung her tail to flip the chocolate in the air before expertly catching it in her mouth. With her sharp teeth, she bit into the chocolate with a satisfying crunch.

“Oh what the.” Ellen said as the chocolate filling escaped her mouth. Quickly using her hand to make sure none spilled onto the bed, Ellen then licked her lips.

Laughing at the scene, Belle couldn’t help but boast about the treat. “Good huh? It’s a type of nut cream filling that’s gotten popular recently. Don’t tell Wise, but that little piece right there costed a pretty Denny.”

Rolling her eyes, Ellen couldn’t believe how far Belle would go for something tasty. Sure she also liked sweets, but quantity over quality as they say.

Seeing the time, Ellen then unwrapped herself from the blanket cocoon she developed. “Metro’s closing soon. I better get going Belle.” Ellen said as she got off the bed.

Before she could take her fist step however, she felt a tug at her arm. Belle had a tight grip on Ellen.

“Wait! Don’t go. How about you spend the night with me? We could have a sleepover, paint each other's nails. Talk about all sorts of things!” Belle said frantically.

Narrowing her eyes, Ellen didn’t beat around the bush as she fully turned to face the kneeling girl. “What’s wrong? You seem scared and don’t make an lame excuse. Corin already filled me in.”

Caught off guard, Belle fell silent. Once again she had to close out her friends to not expose Wise’s secret. Looking down in shame, Belle couldn’t look Ellen in the eye.

“I’m sorry, I can’t tell you. I want to, but it’s a secret.” Belle said as she trembled.

Staring down on her, Ellen looked back and forth between the clock and the girl before closing her eyes. Walking away from the girl, Ellen then reached for her bag before throwing it on the bed which gained Belle’s attention.

“Let’s try black on you and I think I have a spare choker in here somewhere.” Ellen said as she sat back down.

Smiling widely, the two girls then talked the night away as they had fun dressing each other up.

|

Warming up the car to drive out, Wise waited patiently for Belle to finish getting ready. As the back door of Random Play opened, Belle came strolling out with a thermos in hand and a smile on her face.

“Ready to go Belle?” Wise asked. Receiving a nod from his sister, Wise began to drive out of the parking lot and into the Main Street. After fifteen minutes of uneventful driving, the pair would pull up to New Eridu High School.

From the parking lot alone, they could feel the excitement in the air. In the distance, they could hear the music being blasted around campus and the murmur of both students and visitors.

Jumping out of the car, Belle ran ahead before turning back to wait for Wise. Excitedly she continuously pointed in the direction of the entrance.

Happy that his sister was so excited, Wise hurriedly rejoined Belle’s side as the two made their way through the front gates.

As they arrived on campus, they were met with a whole bunch of colors decorating the campus. Banners and kites spread across the buildings as if it were professionally put up, signs and mascots littered the pathways.

But most importantly for Belle, a long line of food stalls was spread throughout the campus. Drooling, she ran over to the shortest line, ready to receive a snack for the longer lines.

Tossing a handful of Dennies to the cashier, she swiftly began munching on a salmon roll. Stuffing her face happily, she eyed her next target.

As she did so, Wise was eyeing other things that would otherwise go unnoticed by a regular person. All of these stalls, most of them are using ether generators for their equipment. He thought.

Looking off to the outskirts of the crowd, he also noticed some armed men. Security is tight as well. What’s going on? Could this have something to do with the sponsor? Wise contemplated.

Smelling the air, his nose then caught the scent of something familiar. It wasn’t the sizzling grease used to fry up the food, nor was it the smell of spices and sauces wafting around every dish. No, it was something only he could smell, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

Whatever it was, it made him salivate. As Wise followed along Belle’s trail, he didn’t pay attention to where he was going and so a blonde student accidentally crashed into him causing both of them to fall to the ground with a shriek.

Feeling guilty for not paying attention, Wise snapped out of it and knelt down to give the girl a helping hand. “Hey are you alright?” Wise asked worriedly.

Taking his hand, the blonde dusted herself off. “Yeah I’m fine, sorry about that mister. Hope I didn’t hurt you or anything like that.” The girl said.

As she looked up to see who she bumped into, her eyes widened as she realized who he was.

Gasping in shock she spasmed slightly as she spilled out a bunch of gibberish. “You! It’s Ellen’s hot coworker!” She said with a glare.

Recoiling, Wise was caught off guard at being considered attractive. “H-hot? You flatter me. You’re Ellen’s friend, Ruby right? It’s nice to see you again,” he said.

Spreading her arms out to block his path, she gave him a fierce look. “Oh no you don’t! Ellen needs to win the talent show to graduate. There’s no way I’m letting you take her somewhere dangerous like the Hollows!” She yelled. Her voice drew the attention of passing visitors.

Anxious about having his private work being revealed, he tried to defuse the girl, but a black and white blur appeared behind her before a massive tail wrapped around Ruby.

Appearing from over her shoulder, Ellen glanced down at the girl in annoyance. “Ruby.” Ellen began.

With a. Chill running down her spine, the girl understood that she just crossed a line as Ellen only used that tone when she was fed up.

“The manager here is playing in the band with me for the talent show. So I’ll appreciate it if you don’t cause him any trouble.” Ellen said.

Sweating profusely, Ruby quickly agreed and apologized for her behavior. “Oh, I’m sorry manager. Won’t happen again! Promise!” Ruby spurted out before breaking free from Ellen’s grasp and running away.

Crossing her arms, Ellen turned to eye him. “You should’ve texted me that you were here so I could meet up with you.” Ellen said.

“Aha, sorry about that. Belle was really excited to try the food that we sorta rushed into the festivities. But that’s not so important I guess. How are you Ellen?” Wise asked.

“The stage is set for us when it's our turn to play. For now the drama kids are performing an old play. So-” Ellen said as she wrapped around his arm. “We just need to enjoy the festival until then.” Marching away, she then proceeded to drag Wise throughout the festival.

Standing there munching on her newly acquired corndog, Belle stared absentmindedly as she was left in the dust of her brother’s recent escapade. Ah, I’m going to kill him for leaving me. Belle thought. Her annoyance would dissipate however when she spotted some familiar faces.

As Wise and Ellen walked throughout the festival arm in hand, the two would garner envious looks from the students as they could not believe their eyes that the untouchable Ellen Joe currently had herself wrapped around a guy.

All around the chatter of the festival consisted of whispers of jealousy and gossip.

“Ayo bro.” An athletic looking schoolgirl said as she tapped the chest of her friend. “Look, it’s Ellen and she’s holding the arm of some guy!” The student said as he pointed towards Wise.

Snapping his head in the pointed direction, the track athlete looking guy looked to confirm his friend’s statement. “Whoa, you’re right! Who is that guy?” He said. Whipping out his phone, he then took a photo of the two to send to his group chats.

“Oh? Didn’t take you for the gossip type, are you still upset that Ellen didn’t join the track team so you can hit on her?” The girl laughed.

Blushing slightly with an annoyed expression, the guy didn’t dare to meet his fiend’s gaze. “I wasn’t going to hit on her. She’s literally the fastest student in the entire school. We would’ve won every meet with her on our side.

Laughing even harder, the schoolgirl began slapping the boy on his back. “Ahaha! You got that right, but don’t think I didn’t catch you sneaking glances at Ellen when she broke our school’s record.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” The boy said.

By the food stalls, those who sat down to have a meal nearly spat out their food as they too laid eyes on the pair.

A schoolgirl brought her hand up to cover her gaped mouth as she swooned over the romantic sight.

“Omg! Guys look, it's Ellen! And she’s with a guy!” The girl said as she kicked her feet in excitement.

“What! My Ellen! With another guy? Unbelievable!” A blonde haired student said in outrage. Standing up, the blonde began to march towards the two before being pulled back into his seat.

“Whoa chill out dude. You got turned down by Ellen, remember? She’s obviously chose that guy over you, so let her be man.” Another student said.

Huffing, the blonde refused to settle down. “Nonsense! The most attractive and popular girl in school should obviously be with the most handsome guy in school.” The blonde said with a proud hand on his chest.

Cringing at their friends' antics, the two students who were used to the blonde’s personality knew exactly how to knock him down a peg or two.

“Chance, come on dude. Just let her go. You’re just being a creep if you keep pursuing Ellen like this.” Said the male student.

Turning to his friends in shock, Chance couldn’t believe his ears. Before he could protest, the female member of his friend group voiced her opinion.

“Chance, every time you pass by Ellen in the hallway, you literally turn around to check her out. Frankly speaking, that's a whole other level of creepy.”

“Wha-“ Chance struggled to voice out. “What are you talking about, when have I ever done something so uncouth?” Chance said with a huff. Angrily he slurped up his tea milk as he awaited their response.

Unfortunately for him, he wasn’t expecting his friends to actually continue.

“Remember when the track and field team wanted to recruit Ellen and you happened to pass by her in the hallway? They were literally mid convo when you blatantly checked her out.” The female friend spoke whilst throwing away her takeout.

“Yeah dude, in front of everyone, in broad daylight. We get that Ellen is super cute, but everyone has boundaries dude and you just crossed it.” The male friend said as he gobbled up the rest of his food.

Grumbling, Chance hears their words and contemplates his recent behavior. Have I actually been a creep? He thought to himself. Shaking his head, he ignored all of his doubts.

“No! I’m the only one fit for Ellen. What more could a woman want when I have both money and looks? I won’t give up until I hear it straight from her rosy mouth!” Chance said as he crushed his tea milk in his hand. Doing so however caused the drink’s contents to spill everywhere, including his uniform.

“Gah! No my uniform!” Chance screamed in disbelief. Laughing at his misfortune, his friends got up to follow Ellen and Wise.

“Haha, come on. Let’s see if they’re really an item. Who knows? Maybe they’ll kiss.” The girl said in a teasing tone. With the other member of the trio following, they left Chance by himself to simmer at her words.

Outraged, he threw his cup to the side rather than finding a trash can. As Chance made to follow his friends, he stopped as he heard the sound of an electrical spark coming from the direction he threw his tea milk. Turning his head, his eyes widened as he saw smoke and sparks coming off of an ether generator belonging to the sponsor of the school’s festival.

Frightened at being held responsible for the damages, he contemplated whether or not he should stay and inform an adult or flee the scene. In the end, with the love of his life being stolen away from him by some rando, he had no choice but to choose what mattered more.

Turning around Chance fled the scene, leaving the generator to short circuit and leak ether from its broken chassis. “Hey guys! Wait for me!” He said as he chased his friends down.

On the other end of the generator, a food stall that was utilizing the energy began to experience failure as it stopped producing heat.

“Huh?” The stall’s cook questioned. Seeing that his electric skillet no longer produced the preferred amount of heat, he began toying with the knobs. After a short moment of failure and no clue as to what the problem was he was forced to close down early.

Walking into the main school building Ellen and Wise passed by many classrooms, each with their own attractions. Some played games with visitors, other’s turned their class into a mini restaurant to make a little money on the side and the rest were to promote their clubs/sports.

However, no matter where they went most students would both recognize and be flabbergasted at seeing Ellen arm in arm with Wise. Unaware of the jealous stares he was receiving, Wise did notice however, the amount of attention they were receiving wherever they went.

Shifting his position awkwardly, Wise would almost pull his arm out of Ellen’s grasp had it not been so tight. “Uh, Ellen? Can you let go of me please? I think your classmates are staring at us. And by us I mean you.” Wise said in embarrassment.

Stopping in her tracks, Ellen looked around to confirm his words and blushed fiercely as she now realized how far they’ve walked.

Now with her feelings exposed to her school, she was sure she was going to get bothered by everyone later as they ask so many annoying questions.

Internally she was thinking whether she could play it off as Wise being a close friend or a false boyfriend. The latter would be useful in silencing all the guys that kept confessing to her.

“Hmmm,” Ellen hummed in thought. Ultimately it all depends on how her friends would react to the news. Shuttering, Ellen knew exactly how they would react if they knew her feelings. “They can’t know at any cost,” Ellen said.

“Huh? Who can’t know what Ellen? Wise asked, his face showing confusion.

Letting go of his arm, Ellen began walking on her own towards their destination, her classroom. “Manager, thanks for letting me borrow your arm, that’ll silence all the guys who wanted to date me,” Ellen said with crossed arms. “As long as the entire school doesn’t know then it should pass by quickly.”

Now getting the idea, Wise gave a slight smile that accelerated the girl’s heartbeat. “Ah I see now, always prepared aren’t you Ellen? I’m happy I could help.” Wise said.

Despite being the one to set up the impromptu explanation for her actions, Ellen was still slightly annoyed that the proxy didn’t quite catch on to her original intent. Sighing in frustration she then opened a classroom door revealing a mostly empty classroom.

Sitting towards the back of the class with desks connected, a group of three girls whispered to each other as they showed their phones to each other.

Noticing the new arrivals to the class Mona gasped when she realized who it was. Hurriedly she hid her phone promoting the other girls to do the same.

“Ellen! You’re here! So soon.” Mona said with a flushed face.

“And with the video store manager at that. Hello again.” Lynn said as she looked to the side awkwardly.

Narrowing her eyes in suspicion Ellen then walked over towards her seat with Wise following shortly behind.

“Nice to see you girls again, so shortly may I add.” Wise said. Not knowing how to interact with the schoolgirls, he defaulted to asking questions an responsible adult would ask.

“I hope your studies are going well?” Wise asked.

His question was answered by various groans from the girls as they showed their dismay.

“Come on manager, it’s a festival today. Nobody wants to talk about schoolwork when we’re supposed to be having fun.” Ruby said as she slumped on her desk. The rest of the girls nodded in agreement.

Fidgeting in her seat, Lynn kept taking quick glances towards the manager. Her gaze doesn’t go unnoticed by the man.

“Umm, Lynn was it? Do I have something on my face?” Wise asked.

Caught red handed, the girl stuttered as she tried to save herself from this situation to no avail. “I-uh um.” The girl said rapidly. Every failing word only further deepened her blush as she clutched her phone to her chest.

With Lynn’s reaction the other two girls also grew tense as they developed a blush. Narrowing her eyes in suspicion, Ellen stared down at the girls in hopes of breaking their spirits.

Her suspicion would further deepen as she could hear the other students in the front of the class stare and whisper her name. The word “boyfriend” was one of the words that stood out to her.

Returning her gaze to her friends, Ellen honed in on the weakest link, Ruby. “It looks like everyone has something to say or something to hide. Do you know anything about it, Ruby?” Ellen said coldly.

Shaking her head furiously, Ruby dared not say anything less her words betrayed her.

“Is that so?” Ellen asked as she closed the distance between her and the now sweating girl.

Without meeting her gaze, Ruby covered her mouth with her hands as she shut her eyes tight.

Seeing that she wasn’t going to get answers out of the blonde, Ellen went for the next easiest target. “Mona spill.” Ellen said.

Immediately, without any sign of restraint, Mona yelped out the secret the three were keeping. “Oh! The school is going crazy over your relationship with the video store manager!” The girl cried.

Her words both froze the two as well as erupted outcries from her friends.

“Mona!” Lynn and Ruby cried out.

“Im Sorry Im Sorry Im Sorry!” Mona said all too naturally.

Although shaken up, Ellen used her tail to hide her massive blush as she pried for more information. “Wha-what do you mean my relationship with the manager? Spill it!” Ellen yelled.

Huddling together and holding each other tightly, the girls then began to explain the series of events that led up to this moment.

“It all started when Ruby came running into the classroom saying the manager was here for Ellen,” Lynn said.

“Then when we started snacking on some food, we noticed some group chats from our school going crazy!” Mona said.

Thrusting her own phone screen into their faces, Ruby then showed the two the trending topic on New Eridu High’s Interknot page. “Everyone is literally talking about you guys right now!” Ruby said.

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Ellen’s worst fear came true as she knew she was in for a headache from all of her admirers.

Ellen was so over it that she didn’t even react as Ruby gripped her shoulders and shook her back and forth.

“Ellen! Ellen! Come on, we're besties right? Spill the tea already girl. What’s up with you and the manager.” Ruby said longingly. Snapping out of it, Ellen lazily looked at the girl and then to the rest of her friend group.

Sighing in exhaustion Ellen got in close to give them half truths. “It’s really not what you guys think. My relationship with him is as a friend on the surface and a professional one in the hollows.”

Gasping the girls looked around to make sure nobody heard them as Ellen could get in serious trouble if anyone knew she was illegally entering the hollows.

Huddling up, the girls whispered back and forth with Ellen.

“That makes sense, he did cover for you when we did that project a while back.” Mona whispered.

“So if he’s involved with your internship, what does that make him?” Lynn whispered.

“Uhh, a mentor? A partner sometimes, he helps me depending on the situation.” Ellen replied.

“So he’s a professional hollow investigator then? That’s so cool!” Ruby whispered a little too loudly. “A video store owner and a badass investigator? Ellen, you sure know how to pick them.” Ruby said.

Feeling satisfied at how she diverged her friend's thought process, Ellen mentally breathed a sigh of relief. Popping another lollipop into her mouth, she then sat up.

Only to realize that her plus one wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Looking around the classroom, she completely lost sight of Wise.

Noticing Ellen’s actions, Lynn quickly informed Ellen about what she missed during their little huddle circle.

“Ellen, if you’re looking for the manager, it looked like he was called into the hallway by someone-“ Lynn said as something crashed into the classroom door.

One of the students who were sitting near the hallway window quickly informed the rest of their classmates about the commotion “the fight club is at it again! This time it looks like a festival guest!” Said the student.

“What? A guest? That’s going too far! The Fight Club could get expelled for that.” A school girl said from her seat.

Rising up to check out the commotion themselves, a nosy school boy whipped out his phone to record the scene. “Forget expulsion, that could be grounds for an arrest if they beat him up too badly,” he said with an excited look.

Realizing that Wise was called out of the classroom, it was fair to deduce that he was the center of attention of the commotion. Alarmed, Ellen jumped for her seat and dashed towards the door faster than anyone could see.

Almost as if she blinked in front of the door, Ellen then slammed open the sliding door with a thud. Finding Wise at the foot of the door clutching his face with both hands, Ellen’s worried face morphed into a scowl as her face grew hotter with rage.

Picking Wise off of the ground, she looked him over to make sure he was alright. Seeing as he was clutching his nose, she parted his hands away forcefully to find his nose bleeding slightly. Narrowing her eyes, her pupils turned to slits as she bared her razor sharp teeth.

Looking up to search for the culprit, her eyes scanned the crowd of people that gathered. From heads peeking out of various classrooms to those who stood in the hallway, her eyes locked onto the only ones who stood out in this situation.

A group of rogue-like students stood in the center off the hallway, closed off by a wall of people. At the forefront of the group was a female brunette wearing a red sash on her forehead.

With an apologetic smile the girl took a step forward to address her.

“Ah, Ellen. It’s not what it looks like, we just wanted a word with your boyfriend, but we had a little accident,” the fighter girl said with an awkward smile.

“The fight club.” Ellen said venomously. Slightly blinded by rage, she misinterpreted the girl’s words as that of a thug mocking their victim.

Once Wise could stand on his own, Ellen turned to walk towards the fighter girl with her fists clenched.

Seeing that Ellen was genuinely mad, the girl felt that as a proud fighter, she should clear the misunderstanding as that was the difference between the fight club and a group of thugs. But her fighting spirit urged her to take this chance to see what Ellen could really do.

Memories of her first attempt at recruiting the shark girl surfaced. Rumors of a shark girl in a high school uniform dealing with their rival school’s ruffians was what first caused the fighter club to seek to recruit Ellen.

Proud of her own skills as a fighter, the fighter girl couldn’t help but smile as she got into a fighting pose.

“Ellen, wait!” Wise said as he continued to clutch his nose. From behind him, Mona, Lynn and Ruby emerged just in time to support him and watch the scene unfold.

Excitedly the fighter girl bounced on one foot after another in order to ready the springs in her leg muscles as she awaited for Ellen to enter her strike range.

“Ellen, I promise that this is one big misunderstanding, but I can’t pass up this opportunity to see what you can really do!” The fighter girl said. But the girl didn’t realize that she made a grave mistake.

She didn’t realize that as a Hollow Raider, Ellen had to be much stronger and faster than the monsters of the Hollows if she wanted to survive.

So, using her incredible speed, Ellen dashed in front of the girl faster than she can perceive and as if playing with her food, Ellen didn’t strike her down just yet.

Instead she waited for the fighter girl to get over her shock and throw a punch before swiping at the girl’s side with her tail, throwing her into the wall.

Upon impact, the fighter girl lost all the air in her lungs. Before she could hit the ground however, Ellen swooped in to grab the girl by her throat and proceeded to slam the girl back into the wall just slightly off the ground. And with her iron grip, she began to choke the girl out.

Seeing this, the fight club realized that Ellen was going too far in this match and made their way to intervene, but a cold glance from Ellen was all it took to stop them in their tracks.

Ready to intervene, Wise began to take his first steps, but before he could a pair of familiar bangboo whizzes passed him before hovering just over Ellen’s shoulders. Not a moment after, another larger blur passed by him as a familiar floating maid hovered just behind the girl.

Still blinded by rage, Ellen was ready to wind her arm backwards to slam the girl back into the wall before the sight of someone’s fingers creeped into her vision followed by a creepy yet sultry voice.

“Gently put the young lady down, Ellen,” said Rina with a smile as she spoke softly into her ear. Startled, Ellen froze for a second at being caught red handed.

“Now. Ellen.” Rina repeated again, this time the smile on her face vanished and the slight hum of electricity radiated from her fingertips.

Closing her eyes in acceptance, Ellen slowly lowered her arm till the fighter girl’s feet touched the ground. Releasing her grip, the girl fell to the ground coughing as her legs gave out.

Quickly her club mates rushed to her side to check on her. Moving backward to make room, Ellen kept her eyes on the ground as she joined Rina’s side.

“We will discuss this later tonight.” Rina said as she walked back towards the proxy. Obediently and quietly Ellen followed.

As the two approached the classroom door the students whispered to one another.

“Geez, Ellen was kinda scary don’t you think?” Student A said.

“Yeah, I think she went a little too far.” Student B said.

“She’s so fast and strong. Do you think she’ll be a void hunter one day?” Another student said.

“Whoa, check out the busty maid.” A Percy schoolboy said to his friends.

Amongst Ellen’s group of friends, the three didn’t react quite the same as the rest of the student body.

Crowding around the shark girl Ruby, Lynn and Mona reassured her that everything would be alright.

“Don’t worry Ellen, if you get suspended we’ll help you study!” Ruby said.

“Ruby! We’ll always have your back Ellen, don't worry.” Mona said.

“On a side note, is that your mom?” Ruby said as she whispered into Ellen’s ear. “She’s kinda hot.”

As Ruby went to check out Rina once more, she didn’t notice the gray blur charging straight for her followed by Belle who was trodding along. Taking a full sized Corin to the stomach the two girls crumble to the ground with a yelp and groan.

Gasping, Belle took her time to catch her breath as she caught up with the group. “R-rina, I’m not built for sprinting.” Belle said. Turning to look at Wise, she gasped as she noticed the trickle of blood coming from his nose.

She was beaten to the punch however as Corin was quicker. Thrusting a handkerchief on his face Corin quickly cleaned him up. “M-master Prox- mhm!” Corin said before Rina slapped a hand over her mouth.

“Attention Corin, remember your surroundings.” Rina said in a sing-song voice.

Frantically looking around at all the eyes in then, Corin’s face grew hot as she bowed towards the proxy. “I apologize for inconveniencing you, manager!”

“Easy Corin, it’s alright. Well it would have been bad had you continued. But no harm done.” Wise said as he helped her up.

“That’s right Corin, no harm, no fowl. Wait, is that the right saying?” Belle said as she pondered her words.

“More importantly, what are you two doing here?” Wise asked as he wasn’t expecting the two maids to be present.

With a dutiful smile on her face Rina took the liberty to explain why they were at the festival.

“Well, it just so happens that Ellen’s music teacher gave me a call a while ago explaining her failing grade in his class. So, as her guardian I thought I would come and support her and watch her performance.” Rina said with clasped hands.

Groaning, Ellen couldn’t believe her luck as she essentially ruined her reputation, got in trouble and now she has to endure the embarrassment of having her “mom” watch her perform.

“Oh I’m sure you all must be tired calling around the festival. There’s still time before the talent show, so how about we all sit down inside and get to know each other?” Said Lynn, her eyes were partially drawn to the two maids as she stepped aside to gesture them into the door.

“Oh what a polite young lady,” Rina said as she hovered slightly above the ground. Entering the class the group followed Ellen as she collapsed into her seat in the back of the class.

One by one each person worked together to put chairs and tables together so that they could all face each other before continuing their conversation.

Once everyone was settled Ruby shot up her hand excitedly to find out more about the maids.

“Ooh! Ooh! Question, so how are you guys related to Ellen?” Said Ruby with stars in her eyes.

Chuckling with a hand covering her mouth, Rina looked towards Ellen before answering. “I am Ellen’s guardian and primary beneficiary. I am also her mentor, teaching her all the skills she needs to succeed in our line of work.”

Another hand shot up, this time by Mona. “What kind of work do you guys do? Is it Hollow related?” Mona asked in a hushed voice.

Whilst everyone else tensed up, Rina was not fazed at the question or at least she didn’t visibly show it as her smile never faltered.

“What an odd question to ask, young lady, but to answer your question. No, we don't deal with Hollow related matters. We at Victoria Housekeeping serve the wealthy echelon of New Eridu.” Rina answered professionally.

Blushing due to her maiden-like heart, Lynn couldn’t help but drift her mind towards the more suggestive part of her imagination.

Seeing the girl’s blush, Rina understood quite well a young girl’s misconception on the idea of “serving” someone.

Coughing slightly to make sure they were listening, she then proceeded to expand on her explanation.

“To reiterate. Our takes are simply that of housekeepers. We clean, do laundry and cook for our clientele. Oh and if it is requested, we also serve at private parties. Our most recent event was New Eridu’s election dinner by the mayor.” Rina said whilst specially eyeing Lynn.”

Banging her fist on the palm of her palm, Ruby now understood a crucial detail the friends were missing. “Oh! So that’s what’s up with the maid outfit!” Ruby exclaimed.

Shifting her gaze from the ashen beauty; the girls then locked on Corin who had been staring at the table the entire time.

“And what about you?-“ Ruby said, but before she could finish her question, Corin shot up from her seat as if waiting to be addressed.

“Y-y-y-yes! My name is C-Corin Wickes. I-I-I am Miss Ellen’s Coworker. She is a great mentor that I l-look up to!” Corin said with a bow, but her over enthusiasm led her to bang her head on the table.

“Ow!” Corin called out as she clutched her head with a red face. Her embarrassment was so evident you can practically see steam rising from her head as she refused to look up at anybody.

Unexpectedly, rather than receiving laughs, she received support from Ellen’s friends as they rushed around the table to the girl.

“Aww you poor thing, it’s ok. Chill out girl.” Mona said as she rubbed Corin’s forehead.

“That’s right, a friend of Ellen’s is a friend of ours.” Lynn said.

Pulling Ellen into a hug, Ruby wrapped her arms around Corin’s head before pulling her into her chest.

“Ellen! What is this adorable creature and why have you been hogging her this entire time?” Ruby exclaimed.

Ellen’s response was to groan as she buried her head in her arms.

Munching on her box of fries, Belle had an idea on how to set up her brother.

Leaning in closer, she whispered into his ear. “Hey bro, looks like Ellen is pretty upset. I think I know of a way to cheer her up.” Belle said quietly.

Leaning in close to hear her plan, Wise would be willing to do anything in his power to help the girl who is currently suffering. “Oh yeah? Shoot.”

With her gremlin-like smile, Belle brought a hand up to his ear to make sure no one else could hear her whispers.

“Ok, so if you whisper into her ear like I’m doing to you. You can say-“ Belle whispered as she instructed Wise to do as she says.

“Really, is that all?” Wise asked in disbelief.

Nodding with a humph Belle went back to devouring her various street dishes.

Clearing his throat, Wise leaned in towards Ellen’s hunched position and tapped on her shoulder in order to get her attention.

After a few seconds, Ellen peeked out of her little arm nest to look at who’s disturbing her slumber. Once she realized it was Wise who wanted her attention, she sat up groggily for him to say what he needed to say.

Taking this opportunity to close the distance, Wise leaned in and used his free hand to cup her ear so that nobody could hear his next words. His actions would result in the girl growing a blush as she thought something more intimate was happening.

“Ellen, cheer up please? If it makes you feel any better, we can continue our one on one another time, like in Lumina Square or something?” Wise whispered.

But from Ellen’s point of view, the way the boy would say it came out a lot more husky, resulting in the girl to become wide awake.

Clenching her lips, she was ready to accept his date before the school’s speakers came alive.

“Attention all students and visitors. New Eridu High’s Talent Show would be starting in approximately thirty minutes. Would all contestants who haven’t gotten ready yet please make their way backstage.” The announcer said.

Forgetting the time, Ellen clicked her tongue in annoyance.

“And would all visitors please follow the students and staff members as they escort you to our new underground theatre .” The announcer finished.

Wordlessly, the students got up from their seats as they gestured to the visitors to follow. Exchanging glances both Wise and Belle had their interest picked by the announcement.

Wanting to know more, Wise asked about their destination.

“Hey girls, can you tell us more about this underground theatre?” Wise asked.

Ever so diligent, Lynn was the first to answer the question. As if talking about her own achievements she proudly explained the characteristics of the building.

“With New Eridu being at the mercy of the Hollows and limited space and resources to go around, the school board decided that if we have no space around the city, then we can have space going below the city.” Lynn began.

The Hollow related members of the group nodded along and imagined the potential design flaws of such a build.

“Not only is it a theatre, but it also doubles as a bunker in the event of a Hollow disaster since it can hold a large amount of people anyways. It even comes stocked with an emergency supply of food, water and bathrooms!” Lynn exclaimed proudly.

“Oh that’s pretty cool, but what do you do about the ether corruption?” Belle asked. “For those with low aptitudes, wouldn’t that make them and the other survivors a sitting duck if people transformed inside the bunker?” Belle asked.

One of the reasons why a bunker wouldn’t be practical is the fact that ether penetrates basically everywhere. Meaning the best way to survive a hollow is to risk it and leave the hollow.

Wagging her finger condescendingly, Lynn hummed as she explained the material of the bunker.

“Tsk tsk tsk. There’s no way that can happen because the walls of our bunker are made with porcelume. The only material in the world known to be resistant to ether. This bunker was actually a donation by T.O.P.S that began a few years back.” Lynn said as the group converged onto a slow moving line of people heading towards a downwards ramp.

Jumping onto Lynn’s shoulder, Ruby butted in to give more detail on the topic. “Oh I know about the story behind the bunker too! Apparently it was all a publicity stunt to gain the people’s trust by promising that their children would be safe in school even during a Hollow Disaster. But rumors say that it was all talk and that no porcelain was actually used to make this bunker,” Ruby said as if she were telling a scary story.

“Yep all three floors are placed with porcelume, btw the theatre extends from the first all the way down to the the third,” Lynn explained.

“They did spend two years digging out and developing our school’s theatre. It’s kinda quick if you ask me. But hey, T.O.P.S does have a lot of resources so maybe they did get the project done quickly.” Mona said.

Those last words from the girl didn’t sit right with the Hollow Raiders as it was not a guarantee. If a Hollow truly did manifest then that would condemn the people in the bunker as the vast majority would be too fearful to leave the safety of the bunker and the rest to fall victim to those who turned and the Ethereals that are waiting outside.

Yet the raiders didn’t dare say that in public. As the group made their way through the doors of the bunker, they were led into a large lobby. In the distance another set of doors were open, revealing rows and rows of red seats.

Before Belle and Wise could follow Ruby and friends to the seats, Ellen pulled on their collars, stopping them in their tracks.

“Nuh uh, we are going left. It leads to the back of the stage. There, we wait till we’re called. We can tune our instruments while we wait.” Ellen explained as she led the way towards the stage.

Massaging their throats, the siblings nodded as they followed the girl closely. As the three walked together, the sound of murmurs and footsteps began to die down as the traffic slowed to a crawl.

Walking slower and slower the deeper into the facility they went, Wise noticed that Belle wasn’t as talkative or excited as she normally is. Curious, he had to make sure his sister was alright.

“Belle, are you ok? I can’t say much about stage fright since I've never performed before, but if we think of this as a job then we can get through this together like always.” Wise said as he rested a hand on her back.

Smiling whilst shaking her head, Belle began to explain her worries to her brother.

“That’s not it bro, truth is, I’ve been practicing my singing the past few days at karaoke. And my voice eventually went hoarse. It was thanks to some Rina and a whole bunch of tea that my voice has gotten back to this point.” Belle explained.

Recalling the thermos in the car and the fact that Belle wasn’t speaking till they met up in the classroom, Wise was able to piece together the signs.

“I see, although I’m miffed that you haven’t been watching your health. I’m also glad that you’re doing better. But, can you sing?” Wise asked in worry.

“I’m not sure bro, Rina gave me an electric massage that’s supposed to relax my throat, but I’m not sure if it’ll be enough. Worst case scenario, you or Ellen will have to fill in for me.” Belle replied with a distant smile.

Appearing over her shoulder, Ellen gave Belle a jumpscare as she interrupted the sibling conversation.

“I’m not singing, no matter what. Too much energy.” Ellen said as if that was all that needed to be said.

And it was as the two girls looked at Wise with expectation. Embarrassed, he tried to think of a way out of the situation as he wasn’t confident with his own skill.

“But I’ve never really sung out loud before. Especially not in front of a crowd, I don’t think I’ll be any good.” Wise defended.

Giving him an over exaggerated shove on his arm Belle rebutted with her own memories.

“Bro we used to listen to new Astra Yao albums together and try to sing it word for word. Despite having a guy's voice, it wasn’t too bad. Oh what about when your friend San-Z released Come Alive? I can hear you singing that in your room and it was actually pretty good!” Belle exclaimed.

Nodding along in agreement, Ellen just wanted the conversation to finish so that they could get ready for their turn as they reached the backstage.

Looking somewhat uncomfortable, Wise couldn’t help but agree as the two girls ganged up on him. Accepting his fate, he formulated a plan as the three made it towards a secluded area of the stage.

Whipping out his phone, Wise called the cavalry for assistance.

“Fairy, are you there?” Wise asked.

As his phone turned on by itself, an eye appeared on the screen. “For you master, always.” Fairy said.

“We need you to mix Astra Yao’s song “Original Me” with San-Z’s “Come Alive,” as a mashup stat.” Wise ordered.

“Roger master.” Fairy responded as she got to work. Like a puzzle piece, Fairy took the lyrics of two songs and put them together and rearranging them as she saw fit in order to create the most fluid piece she could.

Shocked, Belle couldn’t help but raise her voice in defiance as she understood what this order would have meant for her.

“Bro! I can’t sing! Remember ? My voice isn’t ready for this level of activity.” Belle argued.

Without replying immediately, Wise scanned over Fairy’s newly made lyrics and sung it in his head. With confidence he smiled as he shoved the phone into his sister’s face.

“How about if it’s like this Belle? This way we take turns singing. You can start with the low toned parts and I’ll handle the bass drops. We just have to figure out how to play it.” Wise explained.

Looking over the lyrics and singing it in her head herself, Belle wasn’t actually dissatisfied with the work as it was actually incredibly smooth.

Before making a decision, she had to gain input from their third member. With a glance, Belle pleaded with Ellen through her eyes for help.

Too tired to think straight, once Ellen realized Belle was raring, she agreed to the impromptu change to their performance.

“Yeah whatever, as long as it gets me a good grade, then I’ll play my part.” Ellen said which caused Belle to internally sob.

“Alright it’s settled then. We’ll do a mashup.” Wise said happily as he would no longer stand out as much.

As the three practiced with their instruments, trying to practice their transitions and flow, a blonde student came waltzing up to them with a smile.

“Well, well, well. If it isn’t Ellen.” The blonde student said, causing the siblings to turn to him.

Not giving him the time of day, Ellen asked Belle how she should play the next part of the song.

This reaction however would cause the blonde to grow impatient as he raised his voice.

“Hello! Ellen! My sweet lovely Ellen!” The blonde said.

Visibly cringing at his words, Ellen was forced to respond as he didn’t take the subtle hint of leaving her alone.

Looking up to meet his eyes, Ellen gave an awkward smile.

“Oh, hey, you? How can I help you?” Ellen replied.

Flabbergasted, the boy coughed into his fist before resting his hand on his chest.

“Oh I don’t actually need any help. Do I need a reason to see my sweetheart before her big performance?” Chance said while glancing at Wise.

Seeing what’s going on, Belle seized the opportunity to set up her brother for the future.

“Ellen, you had a boyfriend this entire time? So were you just toying with my brother’s feelings?” Belle said with a gasp.

“What?” Wise responded in confusion.

Recognizing Belle’s plan, Ellen quickly shut it down before any misunderstandings could happen less anyone else was listening in.

“Quiet you,” Ellen said towards Belle. Turning towards Chance, she continued. “Look Chance, I think I remember you asking me out, but I’m sorry, can you like stop? I’m not interested.” Ellen said with an annoyed look.

“Oooh!” Belle said in the gallery.

Not backing down, Chance walked up to Ellen to sling an arm around her waist with a nonchalant smile.

“What are you talking about my dear? Who else but me is deserving of the most beautiful girl in school? I’m rich, I’m handsome. I can take care of you.” Chance said as he leaned in closer with every word. The sound of a snap could be heard in the background.

As he went in for a kiss, Ellen’s tail intercepted him before contact as she forcefully pushed him away.

Now serious, Ellen reprimanded the guy for his behavior. “Hey! Don’t be a creep. I said no. I’ll let it slide this time, but get this through your thick skull. I will never ever go out with you!” Ellen scolded.

Shocked, Chance tried to defend himself, but as he did, the sound of flapping caught his attention.

“I think you should stop while Ellen is giving you a chance. Any more and I’m afraid I’m going to have to report you to the school for sexually harassing her.” Wise said as he flapped a photo with one hand and held his Polaroid in his other.

Noticing that the image contained the moment he tried to kiss Ellen, he understood how much trouble he could get into if that photo got around.

With reluctance, Chance decided to flee the scene. “Ahem, well it seems you are incredibly stressed due to your performance. I will be cheering for you from above.” Chance said as he walked away and blended into the sea of the stage crew.

“What a creep. I knew you were popular Ellen, but that was a bit much.” Belle said as she watched Chance disappear from sight.

“It’s a curse. One that I would rather not have.” Ellen said tiredly. “Guys like him don’t give up so easily. He’ll be back,” Ellen said with a yawn.

Getting back on track, Wise continued to orchestrate the band to finish their last minute practice session until they were called onto the stage.

In another corner of the stage Chance was being taught how to manage the lighting from above the stage as he volunteered to be a stage crew member in order to get close to Ellen.

“Alright, your job is simple, shine the light on the performers and keep the light on them. If they move, you move the light to follow them. Easy right?” The theatre teacher explained.

“Right.” Chance replied. Since he failed in seducing Ellen, he was stuck with doing actual work for the talent show. As he was sulking in his failed attempt, he then noticed the sand bags hanging off of the platform he was standing on.

“Uh, excuse me sir? How do these bags work?” Chance asked with a plan in development.

Glancing for only a second, the teacher didn’t even bother to explain as he turned to leave.

“Those bags are secured and tied properly, so you don’t have to worry about them. Just focus on the lights and after the show I can show you how they work.” The teacher said.

Grumbling, Chance wouldn’t let this opportunity slip by him as he began to memorize what rope was connected to which bag and waited for the show to begin.

|

In the audience Rina, Corin and Ellen’s friends decided to sit together as they managed to snag seats near the front due to Rina’s status as a guardian of a contestant.

As the girls sat down, a voice addressed them from Rina’s side.

“Oh Ms.Alexandrina, what a pleasure to see you here tonight.” An apathetic looking man in a suit said.

No one was able to see the slight twitch in Rina’s left eye as she masked it perfectly with a practiced smile. Turning to greet the man she found him slightly bowed as he had his hand opened.

Without pause, Rina placed her hand on his as she greeted him. In her mind however, she would rather not have done that.

“Ah why if it isn’t Ellen’s music teacher. Mr.Salieri I believe? How do you do?” Rina asked.

Giving her hand a gentle kiss, Mr.Salieri then began to caress her with his thumb.

(I’m burning this glove tonight.) Rina thought to herself.

“I am doing fine, my lady. I’m simply here to watch the few students who didn’t do so well in my class perform and grade them for it as extra credit-.” Mr.Salieri explained as he leaned closer.

“I recall our phone call. I hope you give Ellen a fair chance in your grading.” Rina said as she backed away in her seat.

“I take my grading seriously, Alexandrina,” Said as he closed his eyes and crossed his arms. Letting right eye peek open to look the women up and down he continued.

“However, I could be convinced that I may have missed a few grading criteria. I wouldn’t mind discussing Ellen’s grades over dinner?” Mr.Salieri asked with a slick smile.

Giggling to herself to feign a positive attitude, Rina was about to turn him down before Ruby’s head popped into view.

“Oh hey Mr.Salieri!” Ruby said with a bright smile. As she greeted the teacher, Mona and Lynn also popped in with a wave.

The sudden presence of the girls close enough to listen to his little talk with Rina shocked him.

“Ah girls. Hello! Be sure to pay attention to the performances, they’ll serve as good inspiration for your own work moving forward.” Salieri thought.

Mentally cursing the girls out for butting in to his Rina time, he could at least play the part of a good teacher in front of the woman of his desires.

Amongst the girls, they were giddy as they whispered to one another.

“Omg did you guys hear all of that?” Ruby said to the three girls.

“No, what? Does it have something to do with why you suddenly greeted our music teacher?” Mona said, slightly annoyed.

“Mr.Salieri totally was trying to ask Ellen’s mommy out!” Ruby whispered.

With a gaped mouth, Lynn leaned in as she relished the gossip. “That Salieri? Stone faced, I hate everyone Salieri? Eww.” Lynn said.

As the girls went back and forth on how they could tease Ellen with this new piece of information, Corin fidgeted in her chair as she wanted to join the conversation, but was too fearful.

That was when Ruby suddenly remembered the young girl and turned around to include her.

“What do you think Corin? Do you have any juicy details to spill?” Ruby said gently.

Startled, Corin looked down at her lap as she played with her hands to calm herself down.

“U-umm, sometimes Ms.Rina would receive calls specifically from Ellen’s teacher talking about her grades, but the calls would usually last a long time,” Corin began as she shut her eyes in embarrassment.

“And during the times when I have to pass by, I usually hear pieces of the conversation like him asking her what kind of flowers she liked or the type of music she was into.” Corin continued, the new piece of information caused the other girls to giggle and lean in closer to Corin.

The response would help motivate her as she continued to do her best telling the conversations she could recall. Eventually she managed to fully participate in the girl’s gossip.

From just behind Corin, Rina was watching on proudly as a piece of Corin’s shell began to crack.

Unfortunately for her however, with Corin occupied, she now no longer had anyone to talk to, so she was at the mercy of Salieri’s advances.

Luckily she was saved soon after as a student walked onto the stage with a microphone in hand.

“Welcome students and visitors to New Eridu High’s School Festival! I hope you all had a great time with the games and food we had this year.” The announcer said. An eruption of cheers from the crowd rang out in response.

“Before we move onto the first performance, on behalf of the school I have to thank T.O.P.S for making all of this possible. Not only do we have a beautiful theater, but this entire facility also doubles as a Hollow shelter in the event of a disaster.” The announcer shouted out.

“With this shelter, we now have a safe place to keep our students from harm's way as it is fully stocked with essentials and can help slow down the progression of ether corruption. Once again thank you to T.O.P.S for the generous donation.” The announcer continued.

“Now are you ready for our talents here today?” The announcer screamed. An eruption of cheers followed.

“Alright then let’s get this party started!” The announcer finished.

“Oh I can’t wait for Ellen to play!” Ruby exclaimed as she bounced in her seat.

“Chill out Ruby, they won’t get their turn until near the end.” Mona replied as she held the blond girl by the arm.

“But I'm just so excited! Regardless of whether Ellen does well or not, this will be a core memory for a group. I need to record this!” Ruby said as she whipped out her phone.

Shaking their heads in disapproval, Mona and Lynn knew Ellen wouldn’t want them to record this, but then again the entire school would probably do it anyway. So reluctantly they left Ruby to her own devices.

One by one various students took turns performing for the audience. Some acts ranged from singing, to comedy, to acrobatics and finally stage magic. After an hour of non-stop action, laughter and applause. It was time for Ellen’s performance to start.

“Alright everyone, I hope you’ve enjoyed all of the acts we’ve had so far! To finish up our little contest, the last act of the day will be by Ellen Joe and friends as they perform a song for us. Wooo!” The announcer as she hyped up the crowd.

Cheers and whistles rang out as the curtains closed off the rest of the stage. Then as the lights turned off murmurs spread throughout the crowd. The noise only died once a lone light shone upon Ellen as she stood on stage with a hand on her hip and a bored expression on her face.

Despite not performing just yet, the student body roared out in excitement and cheered her on. This act alone showed just how popular the girl was. However, the student body was no match for Ellen’s friends as they waved round glow sticks as they cheered.

Wordlessly, Ellen simply turned around and walked into the slightly parted curtains as her tail swayed side to side. Before she disappeared from sight however, she grabbed hold of the curtain and glanced back at the crowd. With her beauty she momentarily posed for the crowd causing them to roar in anticipation.

Then as she disappeared into the darkness the lights switched off once more before turning back on to reveal each member of the impromptu band in front of their instruments. From the stage’s left stood Wise in front of his keyboard. A single strand of sweat ran down his temple from his nervousness.

On the right was Ellen leaning on her drum set for support. And finally in the center was Belle who looked down towards her feet for support.

With shaky hands Belle gripped onto her microphone tightly as she checked off a mental list of steps she needed to take. After a moment of pause, Belle was unable to speak a word as her stage fright took over her.

As she focused on her mic and tried to utter the first words a hand slapped her back hard enough to knock her out of her daze.

Turning backwards to see the source of the impact, she was met with both Ellen and Wise as they gently smiled. Remembering their earlier words of encouragement, Belle took in a deep breath.

Exhaling, she turned to Ellen to give her the signal to start to which she received a nod. Closing her eyes Belle awaited the three count countdown from Ellen’s drumsticks before strumming her guitar.

With both Wise and Ellen quickly coming in to support the beat of her strumming, the three managed to nearly replicate their chosen song.

As the three continued to play the opening of the song, the audience grew restless as the students immediately recognized the song being played.

“It’s Astra Yao’s “Original Me”, that’s a popular choice amongst the girls in our year, but can this rando pull it off?” A schoolgirl said.

“Even if she doesn’t, she’s still a total baddie. You think I have a shot?” A schoolboy said as he jabbed his friend.

With Rina and the rest, they enjoyed the opening of the song, but held their breaths for the first lyrics to be spoken as they understood what was at risk if the band failed.

And as if feeling their anticipation, Belle opened her mouth to let out the most angelic singing anyone has ever heard.

Word for word Belle sang the song as well if not better than the queen Astra herself. With every lyric that escaped her mouth her confidence grew all the more.

With every second that passed Belle began to take in her surroundings, finding it easier to recognize the people she was performing for.

No longer were they just silhouettes in a dark room, but the silhouettes of people of all shapes and sizes. From the human students to the thirens, the kids, adults and even teachers. Belle recognized all of them.

Even Rina, Corin, Ruby, Lynn and Mona who were waving glow sticks around like crazy were recognized by Belle as she sang her heart out.

As her singing died down and her voice quieted she put a spin on the song by extending a few verses longer than usual in order to draw out what came next.

“The real me is in front of your very eyes. The me I know is waiting to be discovered~” Belle sang.

“Wow, she's incredible.” A visitor said in awe

“She might actually give Astra Yao a run for her money.” Another visitor said.

Proudly, Wise gazed at Belle with awe himself as he wasn’t expecting such a hidden talent from his gremlin of a sister.

(That’s right Belle, you’re the one who enchanted the crowd, now it’s my turn to buy you some time to recover.) wise thought as he gulped down his nervousness.

What came next was a shock to everyone as the tempo and beat of the song was completely cut off leaving silence to fill the room.

For a moment those who have heard “Original Me,” were confused as a catchy beat should have followed after Belle’s last words, instead they jumped in their seats as a male voice suddenly took over the performance.

Grasping the mic in his hands, Wise brought it up as close to his lips as possible and sang as low as he could in order to match the original songwriter's voice as closely as possible.

With a deep breath, he then began to sing. “How long? Can we stay awake? Watch it all fall. Yeah, we watch it all break. How long? ‘Till we all fade away?~”

After a moment of pause, Wise was about to continue the song before he was caught off guard by the comments of the audience.

“Eww, these two songs actually go well together.” A school girl said to her friend.

“Did Ellen hire professional singers? Who are these guys?” Another student said.

“Wow, cute and talented. He’s the total package~” a woman said dreamily.

With Rina and the girls, they were completely immersed in the performance as the two managers completely blew them away with their performance.

(I knew you were special.) Rina thought with bedroom eyes. Unknowingly, her cheeks grew rosy as she eyed Wise up and down.

“M-master proxy.” Corin mumbled in awe.

Continuing the song, Wise was accompanied by Ellen’s beat as she set the pace for him with her accurate drumming.

“How deep are we gonna sink? Before we know it. We’ve been losing our dreams. How deep before we all fade away?” Wise sang as he took an audible breath in.

Together with Wise, Ellen showed her understanding of dynamics by gradually building up the tension and showed her skills by dropping the beat as Wise finished his final verse before Belle took over once again.

“So where do we go?~” Wise sang with the drop of the beat. Suddenly as if waiting for this moment, Ellen began to drum aggressively, perfectly mimicking the beat of the song for her solo before dialing it back a notch for Belle to sing again.

Now with Belle continuing the song, Wise sang his part by supporting Belle on and off. The teamwork between the three was smooth, their playing fluid and the crowd would agree as they erupted in applause as Belle sang the final verse.

Now cheering and taking pictures of the improv band, the audience erupted in flashes of light with every picture taken, the murmur of the crowd completely taking over the auditorium.

Exchanging winning smiles, the band congratulated each other as they knew they accomplished their goal.

“Do you think you got a passing grade?” Wise said jokingly.

“Definitely,” Ellen said with a rare smile.

Huffing in place, Belle stood there proud of herself for overcoming her fears and accomplishing something massive. Not only did the audience cheer her on, but it gave her a taste of a world she could have been in had circumstances been different.

Stabilizing her breathing, Belle turned towards her brother in order to join in on the celebration. But as he came into view a fast moving object quickly descended on him from above.

With her face morphing into one of horror, she quickly tried to alert the two of the falling bag, but her attempt was cut short as Ellen’s instinct was just a second faster.

Jumping into the air, Ellen jumped up and proceeded to bend her body backwards to deliver a powerful kick to send the sandbag flying.

As the girl landed on her two feet, she looked towards the source of the fallen bag to see Chance looking down at her in shock.

Snapping out of it the boy tried to escape as he made his way towards the latter. However, Ellen wasn’t going to allow him to escape as she gave chase.

Realizing that someone was trying to sabotage them, the two proxies also gave chase. With no one left on stage the announcer hurriedly closed off the show to allow the judges to discuss amongst themselves the winners.

As the judges discussed their opinions, Rina and the girls had their own thoughts about the act.

Huddling together, the girls looked over their own video recordings, pictures and social media posts about Ellen’s act.

“Oh wow, look! Ellen is trending on the Interknot! I think this is the most likes I’ve ever received!” Ruby squealed.

“You mean how many likes Ellen received,” Lynn corrected.

“Miss Ellen would s-surely pass with this result!” Corin said happily.

Gasping in shock the girls completely forgot about the reason why Ellen had to participate in the show in the first place. Leaning forward, the girls curiously gazed at Mr.Salieri as he was happily chatting up Rina.

“And so Ellen’s use of accelerando was truly impressive considering the way she would perform in class. I say it’s about night and day!” Mr.Salieri said to Rina.

Placing a gentle hand up to cover her mouth, Rina nodded along as she gave small responses as she politely followed along the teacher’s long rant on music techniques.

After a minute of straight gibberish with small compliments towards Ellen’s playing, the girls were fed up with the stalling as they wished to know the results.

“Oh come on! Did Ellen pass or what Mr.Salieri! Sir…” Ruby said in annoyance before shrinking in her seat upon his gaze.

Gathering himself from being interrupted, the music teacher cleared his throat as he gave the girls a stern glare.

“Whilst her skill was good, her actual performance was overshadowed and carried by the two singers in her band.” Salieri explained in a matter of fact tone.

Hearing this, the girls held their breaths in anticipation as the teacher’s explanation seemed to not bode well for Ellen.

“But, I quite enjoyed the music she decided to play. So yes, I will be handing Ellen enough extra credit points to pass my class,” Salieri finished as he got up from his seat to leave the auditorium.

With the guaranteed news of Ellen’s passing, the girls cheered once more as they can now graduate with their friend. However, their small victory would be short lived as a familiar dizzy wave washed over them like a heat wave.

Instantly the once boisterous auditorium grew silent as every single soul stopped dead in their tracks to look around the room questioningly despite the obvious answer in the air.

Chuckling to herself, Mona grew tense as she asked what was on everyone’s mind. “You’re kidding right? We just got swallowed up by a Hollow,” Mona said. Upon hearing this the people began to mildly panic, their reaction would have been worse had they not been in the shelter.

Exchanging wordless glances, Rina and Corin nodded as they spread themselves around the room in order to calm everyone down. Luckily for them, the announcer would soon step in to address the crowd.

“Everyone, please remain calm and take a seat once more. Due to the Hollow Disaster, we are expecting more people from the festival to enter the bunker, meaning we should take a roll call of everyone present and await rescue!” The announcer said into her mic.

With guidance from the maids, everyone who made their way to leave the bunker earlier began to sit back down one by one in rows as the school staff scrambled around taking a headcount of all the visitors and students.

As they continued their work to ensure everyone was comfortable and accounted for, signs of disaster would soon reveal themselves as small ether crystals would form on the surface of the walls far out of anyone’s sight.

Chapter Text

In a panic, Chance grasped the side of the latter leading down towards the stage. Using gravity to his advantage he glided down the ladder and landed with a crash. Recoiling at the impact, he then darted off into the crowd of people working behind the scenes of the show as a predator gave chase.

Not happy with the boy’s advances nor the fact that he was a threat on Wise’s life, Ellen persistently chases down Chance immediately as he stumbles to his feet after his reckless descent from the stagelight’s catwalk.

(When I woke up today, I didn’t think I’d get into anything crazy. Just spend the day with my friend, eat some food and have some fun! That’s it! Now I’m running from a shark that smells blood in the water and guess who’s the one bleeding out? It’s me!) Chance thought to himself.

Tripping on his own feet, Chance stumbled as he accidentally crashed into a passing student causing her to fall to the ground and the papers in her hands flying into the air.

Without even blinking he didn’t even turn to apologize as the voices of those outraged by the action cried out to him.

Realizing that he slowed down because of that accident, he looked forward to the bustling stage crew as if they were a busy street full of people.

Using the environment to his advantage he continued his sprint towards his goal. As long as he made his way into the hallway, he could slip into any open room as the layout of the building was essentially an underground maze of corridors.

Without any regard for the safety of anyone else he shoved aside anyone who got in his way, jumped over boxes of props and deliberately toppled over a resting backdrop in order to create another obstacle to impede Ellen’s pursuit.

Now out of breath, Chance took a moment to see how much distance he’s made as he turned back towards the mess he caused in order to pinpoint the shark thiren’s location.

With various students and staff crowded against each other he was unable to make out much as everyone blended together like a tree in a forest.

There were students helping those knocked down get back on their feet and those who picked up the spilled props off the ground.

As he continued to observe the scene however, he began to notice everything around him darken a tad as a black blur with a pair of glowing red orbs glided through the crowd at astonishing speeds.

It wasn’t until the blur weaved around groups of people, through small gaps and finally jumped over the now ruined backdrop did Chance realize what exactly it was. Ellen had caught up to him in seconds and she was out for blood.

Finally he understood that he had no chance to escape in the first place as he was never the predator in this chase, he was the prey.

“Did you honestly think you could get away after all the trouble you’ve caused?” Ellen asked as she cracked her knuckles.

As the red eyed shark approached however, Chance wasn’t ready to give up as he turned and threw the door open, continuing his escape.

Sighing heavily, Ellen took a moment to acknowledge the out of breath proxies as they caught up to her before continuing her pursuit.

Now sweating from the intense cardio, Chance dashed through the corridor as he tried every door. With every door locked, he continued his escape further and further into the complex.

After seeing a double door at the end of the hall, he made for a mad dash. His efforts were wasted however as the final door that stood in between him and temporary freedom was locked.

“No. No! No, it's locked!” Chance yelled as he continuously tried to turn the knob. But then he stopped as he heard the distinct sound of footsteps echo throughout the hallway.

With nowhere left to run, he put on his best charming smile and turned to the hunter, ready to make up a satisfactory excuse for his actions.

(That’s right, accidents happen. No one would blame me if they knew it was my first time operating stage equipment. And if anything does go wrong, I can just flaunt my dad’s name and it’ll all be over.” Chance thought as he mentally chuckled.

However, he froze when the same threatening pair of red eyes stared back at him. Somehow just seeing Ellen’s angry, red eyes was enough to dry his mouth and make it seem as if the lit up corridor had darkened.

Gulping and shaking in fear, he stood his ground with his back up against a wall, waiting for his inevitable punishment.

And it came as soon as Ellen was within an arm's length as the sound of a slap rang out loud enough to shake the walls.

Collapsing to the ground the once confident looking boat clutched his red cheek as he corniced to stare into Ellen’s cold red eyes.

Not long after, the proxy siblings arrived just in time to see the boy on the ground. Quickly realizing what just occurred, the two siblings made their way to stop Ellen before she went too far.

Clutching her waist in an attempt to subdue her, Belle shouted into Ellen’s back.

“Whoa Ellen, I get how you feel, but maybe you should let us handle this one and you can be the scary backup ok?” Belle yelled.

It wasn’t until Ellen relaxed her muscles did Belle let go of the girl. With the immediate threat out of the way, the two siblings then turned their attention toward the boy on the ground.

As the eldest of the group, Wise found it his responsibility to get to the bottom of this mess. So with a gentle smile, he leaned down towards the boy and tried to speak like an adult.

“Umm, hey there. Can I ask you why you decided to drop a sandbag on my head? Me and Ellen could have been seriously hurt if it actually hit you know.” Wise said.

(Now’s my chance!) Chance thought as he can now make the excuse that his attempt to take out his rival was just an accident, but a rather harsh glare from Ellen was all it took to stop his attempt.

In the end, Chance spilled the beans and told the truth in fear of being beat down.

“I wanted Ellen all to myself, so when I saw you two together, I sorta wanted to get rid of you. But I didn’t mean to kill you, just make you seem less cool.” Chance said timidly.

“My brother, cool?” Belle said whilst suppressing a laugh.

“Gee, thanks Belle,” Wise said with a roll of his eyes. “Look, Ellen already gave you an answer. Growing up, you’ll realize that you can’t force people to love you. You just have to accept it and move on.” Wise said sagely.

However, he had forgotten how hard headed teens were as Chance promptly stood up with more fire than before.

“But I'm Chance Princeton! I’m the wealthiest and most good looking guy in school. I’m the best, I literally have it all, what kind of girl doesn’t want that? I can give her whatever she wants, whenever she wants. The best looking girl in school deserves to be with the best looking guy in school! That’s just common sense.” Chance ranted on as his face grew redder by the second.

(AH, silver spoon…) Wise thought. Before Wise could tell him the error of his ways, Ellen grabbed him by the shoulder and shoved passed him.

Now face to face with the boy, she crossed her arms as her glare hardened.

“Look man, I’ve dealt with tons of guys like you who are both richer and far more good looking. And most of them always ask to take me home. And frankly, it's annoying. I don’t need a sugar daddy or someone to take care of me. I can take care of myself. And whoever I'm with is nobody else’s business. So I'll let it slide just this once, don’t you ever hurt my friends again. Got it?” Ellen said with a poke to his chest.

At a loss for words, Chance was so desperate to have Ellen that he couldn’t find the right words to say; so he acted instead as actions spoke louder than words. Trying to showcase his affection for the girl, he dove in to steal a kiss.

However, he was promptly smacked in the side of the head by Ellen’s massive tail before he made contact. Collapsing to the ground, he could only watch as Ellen gave him a disgusted look before walking away.

“If my friends weren’t here, I would have beaten you unconscious.” Ellen said as she turned back to give the boy a glare. Giving the boy a glare, Belle also turned her back on the boy to follow the girl.

Sighing heavily, Wise gave up on trying to redeem the boy after that last stunt he pulled and too followed the girls.

Slumped against the wall, Chance could only watch the three disappear from his sight as he simmered in his anger, outraged that he was humiliated on top of not getting the girl of his dreams.

Awkwardly, the proxies exchanged glances as they tried to figure out how to console Ellen after witnessing first hand how guys pursue her.

“Uh, Ellen, don't mind that guy, he’s just another jerk-“ Belle said. But before she could finish her sentence, a dizzying wave hit her causing everyone to stop in their tracks and tensed up.

Inhaling the ether rich atmosphere, Wise couldn’t help but salivate as he understood what just happened.

“We were swallowed up by a hollow,” Wise said as he covered his drooling mouth.

“A hollow? How could that be? We’re a good distance away from a companion hollow.” Ellen said as she turned back towards the two in hopes of an answer.

Instead she finds Belle comically covering Wise’s eyes with both her hands as he wipes his mouth.

“Uh?” Ellen sounded as she was unsure of what the two were doing.

Laughing it off, Belle hid her hands behind her back as she tried her best to come up with an excuse.

“How the hollow formed can be left up to the experts, what we need to do now is make sure everyone is safe.” Belle said as she instantly came up with a plan.

“Right, we can meet up with Rina and Corin and hang tight until rescue arrives. Since we’re in the bunker, we don’t have to worry about corruption so could you lead us back towards the auditorium Ellen?” Wise explained.

With a solid plan, the three took their time walking through corridor to corridor with Wise lagging slightly behind so that Ellen wouldn’t notice his glowing eyes.

After a while of walking and a short pause to study a map on the wall, the three would eventually make it back to the auditorium.

But rather than finding people in it boisterously talking to one another, they were met with everyone sitting down patiently in their seats.

The eerie quietness of the room should have been the first indicator of something going wrong, but the second being that students and visitors can be heard crying in some areas.

Exchanging worried glances, the three could only exchange questioning glances as they tried to figure out what was happening.

That was when Ruby stood up on her seat and waved her arms around frantically to gain their attention. Ellen would have expected the girl to yell at the top of her lungs to gain their attention, but she was more restrained which alarmed her.

Now heading towards where Ruby and her group was, Wise stared at the ground in order to not alarm anyone and was guided by Belle as she discreetly held his hand to steer him.

As they made their way between the aisles and rows of chairs, they finally had the chance to observe the citizens up close to gauge how well they were.

Some were alert and active, others showed signs of confusion, a group of students were trying to see videos that won’t load on Knock Knock and a few of those crying were visibly covered in blood.

Holding her hand up to her mouth in shock, Belle gave the people a look of pity at what they must have gone through. Upon arriving at the group of girls, Ruby, Mona and Lynn jumped to their feet to wrap Ellen in a group hug.

Struggling to escape their grasp, Ellen then stopped her thrashing as she noticed Corin curled up in her seat with tears streaming down her cheeks. Quickly motioning for the proxies to console the young girl, everyone made their way to settle down around Corin.

But not before the scent of iron caught Ellen’s attention. Tracing the back to the source of the smell with a sniff of her nose, Ellen then realized that it was coming from Mona as she was covered from blood.

Alarmed, Ellen grabbed onto the girl’s shoulders as she examined the cow thiren up and down for signs of injury.

“Mona! What happened to you? Are you hurt?” Ellen said as she broke her usual stoic expression in a rare display of concern.

Brushing Ellen’s hand off, Mona mustered up a tired looking smile as she sat down in an open seat.

“I’m fine, it isn’t my blood. I’m ok, really.” Mona said as she motioned the rest to get comfortable as well.

Sitting on the floor as all the other seats were taken by other students and visitors, Wise asked what was on his mind.

“I’m sure you’re aware, but the three of us were gone for a little while. Can anyone fill us in on what we missed out on? Why is everyone looking so sullen and more importantly, why are some people injured?” Wise asked as he held Corin’s hand.

Looking down, the girls trembled as they recalled the memory. Choosing to be the one to explain the events from before, Mona figuratively stepped up as she recalled what transpired in the last 30 minutes.

“It was going smoothly at first, Corin and Miss Rina were amazing! Immediately they got up and spread out to direct people back in their seats along with the teachers,” Mona said with a slight smile.

But her smile didn’t last long as she began to hyperventilate as she remembered the darker parts of the story.

With Lynn being the second most level headed of the group, she quickly motioned Mona to stop as she took over the responsibility of storytelling.

“We were fine at first, what came after was what caused everyone to be so negative.” Lynn said.

| 30 minutes before

“Alright everyone, let’s sit back down in an orderly fashion so that we can wait for help to rescue us together. That’s it, one line right back down to the first row of seats now,” Rina ordered as she stood at one end of the auditorium.

On the other end, Corin was also helping everyone keep their cool as she attempted to mirror Rina.

“P-p-please fill up the seats as q-quickly as possible, we are expecting more survivors soon, so sit down with your friends or family as quickly as p-possible!” Corin tried to say.

Despite her stuttering and unopposing image, it was the sheer amount of effort the girl displayed that got people to display. Some even felt bad for her, but chose to look at it from a brighter side.

“Wow, it’s like this disaster doesn’t even phase them,” Ruby said with wide eyes as the girls watched the two maids get to work.

Nodding in agreement, Lynn began to think. “Yeah you’re right, it’s like they’re even used to this-“ turning to look at her friends, Lynn displayed a face of shock as she came upon a realization.

“You don’t think Ellen actually comes from a family of hollow investigators and that Miss Rina is actually an undercover investigator do you?” Lynn said confidently.

With a hand on her chin, Mona was about to refute the claim, but then thought about the idea some more.

“That could make sense, there’s no way Ellen’s guardian would let her in the hollows if she didn’t give permission. Huh, Miss Rina is full of surprises.” Mona said in awe.

As the girls continued to watch the maids at work, an argument broke out near the doors heading into the auditorium.

“Move it! Let me in so that I can take my seat.” A grumpy man in a suit said as he shoved the people in line.

Not liking the fact that they got shoved, a female boar thiren argued back with a huff.

“Hey! Watch who you’re pushing around or else you’ll lose a couple of teeth!” The boar lady bit back.

As the two argued back and forth it would increasingly become heated as the two were ready to throw hands.

“I-I can’t watch this anymore,” Ruby said as she sprung to her feet to intervene in the adult squabble.

Shocked, Lynn and Mona tried to restrain Ruby so that she wouldn’t get hurt, but were too slow to react.

“Ruby, wait! Don’t go, you’ll just get hurt!” Lynn screamed in vain.

Running up towards the two adults, Ruby inserted herself in between the two as the man in the suit was about to launch a punch. Luckily for her, the man in the suit ended up noticing her before it was too late.

“Hey! Get out of the way before you get hurt, little girl!” The man said with a scowl on his face.

“No! As a proud student of this school, I have the responsibility to make sure all visitors adhere to all the rules to ensure the safety of everyone!” Ruby said to the man with a defiant look. As she finished saying this statement Mona and Lynn arrived by her side.

“That’s right, we can’t have rowdy guests cause trouble when there’s a lot more people in need of help. So why don’t you patiently wait in line like everyone else?” Lynn said as she tagged in for Ruby. Her statement would then resonate well with all the surrounding people as they voiced for the man to back down.

Knowing that he can’t karen his way in front of the line, the man was about to back down, but a commotion from behind him caught everyone’s attention which reignited his need to get to safety.

In a panic, the man screamed at the girls in front of him as he launched a punch towards Ruby who was at the front of the group. “I don’t have time for this, get out of my way now!” The man screamed.

Caught off guard by the commotion outside the shelter, Ruby was unprepared for the man’s attack and so could only scream as she awaited for the punch to connect. However, the man’s fist never connected with her face as it struck metal.

Recoiling, the man held his hand in pain before seeing what he struck.

Standing to the side of the group Corin held out her weapon to block the attack.

“Is that a chainsaw?” Lynn said which prompted the girls to back away slowly.

Timidly Corin then gave the man a solemn warning.

“P-please don’t cause a disturbance and wait patiently in line or else-“ Corin said before being cut off.

“Or else what?” The man in the suit said after noticing how meek and small Corin was.

“Uh-“ Corin panicked. Aware that she’s not the most intimidating person in Victoria Housekeeping, she then remembered a phrase Belle would often spout whenever she got frustrated while gaming.

Revving up her chainsaw, Corin struggled to keep it under control as the powerful vibrations nearly caused her to drop it as she momentarily lost her grip.

After regaining control of her weapon, Corin then swung it down in front of the man’s face, the sheer weight of her weapon caused her to stumble forward a bit which pushed her weapon all the closer towards the man, scaring him in the process.

Immediately the man lost what little bravado he had left and fell backwards onto the ground as his eyes nearly popped out from his sockets in shock.

With a frantic expression, Corin then yelled out “give up or else I’ll-I’ll, ILL CUT OFF YOUR BALLS!”

After her exclamation however, she would begin to fume in embarrassment as her words sunk in. Growing as red as a tomato, Corin began to quiver in embarrassment as she mentally begged the man to stand down.

“Holy sh*it it's real!” Ruby yelled out as she put her hands up in defense and backed away with the rest of the people in line.

“A-are you crazy!? You can’t just be swinging a weapon around like that in front of innocent people!” The man screamed.

Confused Corin then questioned the man. “Innocent? But from my perspective, you were trying to hurt my friends. You even tried to hit Ruby!” Corin rebutted.

Realizing that Corin was trying to protect her, Ruby would then snap out of her state of shock and back the little maid up in order to defuse the situation.

“Wait, that's right! This was your fault to begin with!” Ruby said as she pointed a finger towards the man.

“That’s right, now how about we settle down and wait patiently or else our little green friend here would have to teach you a lesson?” Lynn said smugly as she patted Corin’s shoulder

Defeated, the man lowered his head as he got back to his feet and nodded in agreement. Wordlessly he then took his place in line. With the commotion now over, the girls then stood towards the side to allow the line to reform and progress forward into the auditorium.

As more and more people made their way into the shelter, the flow would go from a steady trickle to a heavy flow as the people that came later were desperate to enter.

Eventually the influx of people would be much greater than the pace of the line entering the auditorium, resulting in visitors congregating and blocking the stairs that led down the shelter.

As a result Ruby and friends found it their duty to help everyone settle down to make sure everything went as smoothly as possible just outside the stairs leading down to the shelter.

“Hey no pushing! You adults have been to a school before so you should all know the concept of a line!” Mona shouted in annoyance as the visitors kept shoving.

“That’s right, we assure you that there should be enough space for everyone, so let’s take it nice and slow. We have an emergency supply of ether corruption medicine and food so please proceed in an orderly fashion.” Lynn shouted to her own line.

“Hey! Watch where you’re grabbing buster! Or else I’ll get the chainsaw maid to throw you out!” Ruby said from her densely packed line.

“No! It’s too packed now, someone could get hurt!” Mona and Lynn screamed in unison.

As the three continued to do their best managing the line, the peace would soon turn into a nightmare as it only took the words of one person to ignite a rampage.

“P-please let me in! I don’t want to die!” A man said as he limped towards the shelter. Upon closer inspection, the man wore torn clothes and was heavily bleeding from all over his body.

“Please! Ethereals! They’re here! There are ethe-“ the man let out before he was crushed by a boulder. The sound and shockwave were so great, they caught the attention of everyone, even those at the front of the line.

However, everyone was stunned at the sudden impact. The boulder would then look like it grew legs as it appeared under the rock and turned around to face the crowd revealing a beholder engine.

With a powerful roar the beholder signaled for his kind to congregate on his location as he then charged towards the stairs.

“Coming through! Let me through! Everyone get inside quickly! Ethereals! There are Ethereals coming!” A security guard with the school's logo yelled.

Quickly realizing the girls were outside, he then grabbed hold of Ruby and Mona’s arm as he forced his way through the crowd.

“Out of the way! Security coming through! What are you doing out here!? You girls should already be inside the shelter!” The security guard scolded as he struggled through the crowd.

“We were helping keep things orderly since there were people being disorderly sir!” Lynn said as she struggled to keep her footing.

“We have staff members to do that! You students just need to sit tight and wait to be counted!” The officer said as he finally forced his way through the door.

Running towards the office to the side of the lobby, the officer threw open the door with a crash and turned on his equipment. After making sure everything was in order, he then pressed a button on a mounted mic.

“Attention all visitors and members of New Eridu High. This is school security speaking with urgent need. Due to the presence of Ethereals, I will now be putting the shelter in lockdown mode. That includes closing and reinforcing the gates to the shelter.” The security guard said with a stone face.

Having followed the security guard, the girls gasped as she heard his announcement live. Looking outside the office window they watched as a huge crowd of people crowded into the lobby.

“You can’t! There's still tons of people waiting to take shelter!” Ruby yelled in anger.

“That’s right! We can’t forsake them! Everyone outside needs our help. That’s the point of a shelter!” Lynn added on.

Slamming his fist on the table, the security guard then stood up and menacingly walked towards the girls.

“There are ethereals outside the shelter! They are on our doorstep and could get inside where everyone else is! If I don’t close it now, they will kill everybody.” The security officer said as he motioned towards the lobby.

“But-“ Mona responded only to be cut off by the adult.

“No buts!” The security guard said as he grabbed and pulled down in a lever on the wall.

With the metallic sound of metal creaking, the metal gate began to close on the shelter causing those outside and on the doors path to panic.

With multiple people pushing on each other in such a small area, people began to trip and pile on top of one another causing a blockage at the door.

“Ah stop pushing! Let me get up!” A woman said as she pushed herself off the ground.”

“Hey! Don’t stop! Keep moving! Let me in!” A student who was late to enter said desperately as the doors were closing in on him.

“No! Those people aren’t going to make it!” Ruby said in desperation. Thinking quickly, she then went to reverse the switch on the wall. Her actions were rewarded as the door stopped its movement and retracted, allowing the stream of people to increase.

Immediately afterward she was slapped to the ground as the security guard pulled down on the switch. Standing over her, the security guard then pulled her to her feet and shoved the girls out of his office.

“Go sit down in the auditorium! Now! I could ah you expelled for endangering everyone’s lives, but fortunately for you, I have a checklist I have to deal with so leave!” The security guard said as he slammed the door shut.

Sniffing from the pain, Ruby nursed her injury.

“Ruby, are you ok?” Mona said in concern as she rubbed circles on her back.

“That guy's just a jerk! Don’t let him get to you!” Lynn said in affirmation. However, deep down she would have to agree with the security guard’s actions as Ruby could have potentially killed everyone.

Wiping her tears on her sleeve, Ruby then gave one last sniffle before pulling her act together.

“Yeah, let’s just go sit down. I think we’ve done enough to help.” Ruby said with less energy.

“Ah!” An ear piercing scream cried out from the direction of the door. Turning to the door the girls were met with a mother being crushed as she tried to shove her kid to the other side.

“Mom! You can make it! Come on!” A little boy said as he pulled on his moms arm.

“Oh my gosh! We have to help her.” Mona said as the other two girls nodded. Thanks to the gate closing, the area near it became mostly empty.

“Don’t worry ma’am. We’re going to pull you in here!” Mona said as she pulled on the woman’s arm. Behind her, multiple people also reached into the gap, hoping to be saved.

“Oh god! Oh god it hurts!” The woman cried out with tears in her eyes. Behind her, multiple people tried to pry the door open and even managed to momentarily stop it with pure strength.

As the door momentarily opened slightly the girls took this opportunity to pull even harder resulting in the woman’s torso making it through the door.

“Almost there!” Ruby grunted as she gazed into the woman’s eyes. Determined to save the woman, the girls never broke eye contact as they used the woman and child as motivation to keep pulling.

However, Mona would soon stop as she found a pair of white bony spikes protruding around the woman’s neck and towards her.

“What the? What is that-" Mona said before the spikes snapped shut and freed the woman’s head from her shoulders.

With the woman’s strength gone, the girls found their strength insufficient as the door promptly closed shut, forcing the girls to collapse on the ground as the woman’s body was torn in two.

With no more vessel to contain it, the woman’s blood then gushed in all directions and coated Mona who was the closest.

Not used to the gore, Ruby and Mona recoiled violently and screamed at the sight of the woman’s upper body sprawled out on the floor.

Trying to hold back a gag, Lynn couldn’t help herself as she let loose the contents of her stomach. She internally cursed herself for eating such oily foods during the festival.

Crying to herself, Ruby knew that she was partly responsible for the death of the mom as she gave her the chance to get trapped by the door.

With nothing left to throw up, Lynn wiped her mouth clean before seeing Mona sitting on her knees covered in blood.

“Mona!” Lynn cried out. Shaking the girl in her hands, Mona was unresponsive as she confided to stare at the woman’s body.

After looking the cow girl over and making sure she wasn’t injured, Lynn tried to snap the girls out of their shock as they had to get somewhere else.

And she would have done so herself had the sound of various people banging on the other side of the door not done so already.

For the next few seconds, the girls would silently listen as various people begged to be let in and continue the intensity of their banging as they screamed of Ethereals approaching.

It wasn’t until the sound of audible roars and grunts made their way closer to the door followed by the haunting screams of those outside did the sounds die down.

Stifling their cries of anguish, the girls sobbed to themselves after witnessing the end of so many people at the hands of the ethereals that they finally noticed the little boy in the corner.

Being the most kept together Lynn approached the boy who was clutching onto his mothers hand in tears.

“Momma!” The boy cried. The scene was enough to break anyone’s heart, but Lynn had to stay strong and help the boy and her friends through this tough time.

Creeping up behind the boy, she then grabbed hold of him from under his arms and pried him away from his mother.

“I’m sorry we couldn’t save your mother, but we need to get to safety first. Let's get grown up to take care of you ok sweet?” Lynn said in hopes of the boy understanding.

However, rather than collapsing in her arms and relying on the teen, the boy instead whipped his tears as he slowly walked towards the girl’s side and held her hand.

“Momma -hic- always said that we lived in a world where we can die at any moment so we have to be brave and keep moving forward.” The boy explained.

(Wise words. But to learn such a lesson at a young age…) Lynn thought. Pulling the boy into a hug, she wasn’t sure if she did so because he needed comfort or if she did.

After a moment to recharge, Lynn then inhaled deeply as she raised her voice towards her friends.

“Ruby! Mona! We need to go, so snap out of it!” Lynn yelled. Snapping out for their state of shock, the girls understood that Lynn was right that they shouldn’t be dwelling here of all places.

So after one last glance at the woman’s body, the three leaned in each other for emotional support as they turned towards the doors leading towards the auditorium.

After the commotion, it was no wonder that the lobby was now empty of all other visitors as they promptly headed inside to be taken care of.

“Wait what’s that?” Ruby asked as she pointed at something crawling on the ceiling.

Peeking out from over Ruby’s shoulder, Mona widened her eyes in shock as she noticed a certain feature of the object.

But before she could warn the other, the object fell to the floor revealing a hitchspiker. Showcasing its powerful pincers and tail, the ethereal stretched its limbs as it faced the auditorium doors, presumably due to the sound of people inside.

Known as the giant scorpion Ethereal, these species are known to latch onto weaker Ethereals in order to give them a power up as well as a lethal stinger.

For the average hollow raider it is no real threat by itself, but for a civilian, it was still a threat to their lives.

Quicky Mona turned to her group and raised a quiet finger up to her lips, signaling them to not make a sound.

Using her own experience in the hollows after following Ellen a few weeks ago, she realized that Ethereals weren’t adept at tracking so the best way to get around one is to sneak around.

So quietly the Mona motioned everyone to stay close to the balls and tiptoed quietly towards the door.

(After today, especially after seeing little Corin whip out that chainsaw; I’m sure of it, they are a family of hollow investigators! So as long as we get to either one, they can kill this ethereal.) Mona thought.

With a plan in mind, the group miraculously made it halfway through the lobby undetected before the sound of the security office door opened and the angry voice of the security guard cut through the silence.

“What are you ladies still doing here!? Get inside now so that the staff can count you-,” the security guard scolded before he finally noticed the Ethereal.

Likewise, once the Hitchspiker took notice of the security guard it immediately locked on and snapped its pincers as a sign of intimidation. Lunging at the man, the security guard slammed the door shut, the impact sent the hitchspiker flying backwards.

“Now’s our chance, run!” Ruby yelled. Using this opportunity the girls quickly dashed across the room towards the auditorium doors and quickly entered.

Closing the door behind them, the girls breathed heavily as they scanned the room for either Rina and Corin.

Spotting the two talking to some school staff near the stage, the girls rushed down the slope of stairs in order to deliver the news.

Falling on top of one another, the three girls tried to recount the events that transpired just moments ago. However, with three people talking at the same time, no one was able to understand what they were saying until the little boy that followed them interrupted the three.

“Be quiet!” The boy yelled. Quickly the girls quieted down in response. “Good. Adults should be calm so that they can think straight.” The boy scolded.

Embarrassed, the girls couldn’t help but look away after being lectured by someone probably half their age.

“There’s!” The three said in unison before shutting their mouths. Staring at each other they made an unspoken vote as to who should speak.

Being elected the speaker, Ruby delivered the news to the maids and teacher in charge.

“There’s an ethereal in the lobby. A small one shaped like a scorpion. We were hoping one of the maids could take it on.” Ruby explained.

Humming to herself, Rina exchanged a glance with Corin as she responded with a nod. Ready to take on the foe, Corin was already making her way up the stairs as the teacher reconciled the girls.

“Young lady, what do you expect a maid to do against an ethereal? Sweep them under a rug? And to ask such a thing from a visitor no less. You girls go sit down so that our helpers can finish the headcount.” The teacher in charge said as she dismissed the girls.

After accomplishing their goal, the girls handed off the boy to the teacher in charge and claimed a couple of seats towards the top of the auditorium.

Once they sat down and finally had a safe place to relax, they silently broke down in their seats. Memories of the voices of people begging for their lives as they were culled by monsters played on repeat in their minds.

|

Despite wanting to scold her friends for putting themselves in danger during a crisis, Ellen ultimately kept silent as she believed everyone had enough punishment considering the trauma they went through.

On the other hand, after hearing the story on how the girls lost their spark, there was another question everyone had.

“So what happened to you Corin?” Wise asked on everyone’s behalf. Surely a seasoned maid from Victoria Housekeeping couldn’t have encountered anything that left them too shaken.

With tears welling up in her eyes, Corin grew more visibly upset. Immediately Wise and Belle were ready to enter babying mode in order to continue comforting the girl, but the maid explained her side of the story regardless.

Blowing her nose into a handkerchief, Corin took a deep breath before telling everyone what happened from her perspective as she fiddled around with her fingers to calm herself.

“It shouldn't have been a problem. I should have been able to do what was expected of me as a member of Victoria Housekeeping, but-” Corin buried her face in her palms. “But I was useless,” Corin cried.

“What happened was-” Corin continued.

| Outside the auditorium

With a clear goal, Corin walked up the steps of the auditorium and took a peek through the door in order to survey how many ethereals she was dealing with. After spotting the one ethereal continuously lunging at the Security Office door, she gently entered the bunkers lobby and closed the door quietly behind her.

(Ok Corin, you can do this. It’s just one Ethereal and it's a small one at that. You can do this. You can do this. You can do this!) Corin thought as she charged towards the Hitchspiker.

“Whaaaa!” Corin cried out as she gripped her weapon above her head with both of her hands. In one clean blow Corin gave a quick twirl as she swiped at the scorpion from behind. But rather than slicing through the Ethereal, it was instead sent flying into the office window resulting in a breach.

Shocked at the scene, Corin wondered why the Ethereal wasn’t sliced in two on the floor until she realized that she forgot to pull the cord to turn on her chainsaw. Jumping in place Corin quickly ran to open the office door as she heard a blood curdling scream coming from the office.

“Oh no! Don’t worry ma’am i’ll be right there!” Corin yelled as she jiggled the nob. Seeing that it was locked she revved up her chainsaw in a panic and sliced the door in half. With a powerful kick, she broke off the unstable piece barged into the office.

After entering the office her blood ran cold as she found the security guard lay on his chair completely limp as the hitchspiker clung to his torso as it ripped him apart. In disbelief Corin crashed to her knees as she realized what her actions just caused.

(I-I let it inside and it attacked a civilian. Wha-what have I done?) Corin thought to herself. (Useless, I'm so useless. What did I do?) Corin ridiculed herself.

Whilst she was mentally beating herself up, Corin failed to realize that the Hitchspiker had finished carving up the corpse and began to lose interest until it noticed Corin completely defenseless.

Jumping off of the corpse, the ethereal smeared blood all over the floor as its undersides met the ground before it promptly lunged at Corin who was beginning to black out from her panic attack.

With its powerful pincers the hitchspiker successfully managed to pin Corin down from her arms to her legs as it raised its stinger up into the air. Finally snapping out of her daze, Corin struggled as hard as she could as she tried to shift her weapon in such a way that she could attack the ethereal.

However, with her arms pinned down, she could do no more than struggle and with time running out she could only shut her eyes and scream as the stinger came down on her. Feeling a breeze fly by her and the familiar feeling of being cloaked by static electricity, Corin shot her eyes wide open to see Drusilla barely holding back the ethereal’s stinger.

Floating in from the doorway Rina silently looked down on the teary eyed girl before observing the office. Narrowing her eyes slightly Rina extended her hand to deliver a powerful electric shock that not only fried the Hitchspiker, but also sent it flying towards the other side of the room.

Without giving the ethereal a chance to recover, Rina continued to blast it with pulses of electricity until it eventually flipped onto its back and curled up its legs. Satisfied, Rina directed her attention towards Corin who hadn’t gotten back up yet.

Rather the little maid continued to lay on the ground as she looked towards the gory corpse with tears in her eyes. Understanding that Corin was experiencing grief for being unable to save the man, Rina silently waited for Corin to get up on her own.

After a little while the two left the office to return to the auditorium where Corin curled up next to Ruby and the girls and Rina left to talk to some of the school's staff.

|

“Ands that’s what happened.” Corin said. After finishing her story, Belle wrapped her up in a tight hug which Corin reciprocated.

Expecting the other proxy to console her as well, Corin gazed at him expectantly, but was met with him sitting at a distance.

“Ma-wise?” Corin asked curiously.

(Why is he so far away from everyone?) she thought. Observing his features Corin noticed that his eyes were gently closed as he controlled his breathing.

Suddenly her eyes widened as she remembered the proxies' low ether resistance. Panicking once more, she struggled out of Belle’s hold as she hopped on her feet.

“Oh my gosh m-managers! I forgot about your unique condition. Please allow me to retrieve some medical supplies for you!” Corin said as she began to run off in a random direction.

She didn’t get far however as Ellen grabbed her by the back of her neck, completely stopping her in her tracks.

“Ack!” Corin yelped as she choked on her uniform.

“Hold it Corin. We have rules here in school. Once everyone is accounted for, those who have low ether aptitude would be first on the list for receiving ether suppressants.” Ellen said as she let go of the little maid.

“That’s right Corin. During times of a disaster everyone will be taken care of by the school's staff and students until rescue arrives. So relax while the grown ups do all the work.” Lynn said as she reclined her seat to get into a more comfortable position.

Following her example, the other members of their group got as comfortable as they could be given their circumstances. With no more need to talk to the girls, Belle sat down beside Wise.

“How are you holding up bro?” Belle asked as she observed crystals forming on his neck.

Turning to look toward her, Wise finally opened his eyes to show her his glow.

“Be honest, how bad is it?” Wise asked as he struggled to suppress the change. Making sure that nobody else could see him, Belle cupped his face to shield his eyes from any onlookers.

“Definitely glowing, if you feel like you can’t suppress it anymore, then you’ll probably have to hide in the bathroom or something until the hollow blows over or escapes when nobody's looking.” Belle explained.

“Right. Although it is strange. The last two times I got caught up in a hollow, I usually have a dream about it, but today? Nothing.” Wise responded.

“Maybe there’s some kind of trigger. Like a natural response to a certain thing. What were your dreams like the first two times?” Belle asked as she jotted down ideas in her phone.

Thinking back on when all of the changes began, Wise couldn’t quite recall what happened in those dreams as they were hazy.

“I think the first time around, I was eaten up by a giant ethereal. That was when I got my powers. The second was a starry night sky coming from the ocean, that was the kraken-“ wise recounted.

Every word he spoke, Belle jotted down. Formulating a theory of her own.

(Every dream correlates with a major event so far. So the fact that bro didn’t have one this time means that this disaster isn’t going to be out of the ordinary.) Belle theorized.

“And then there was my latest one where I saw a giant mirror showing my other self.” Wise finished recounting.

“A giant mirror huh?” Belle jotted down.

After a little while a member of the school's staff came around and finished counting everyone in the shelter along with their ether aptitude.

What came next was an announcement by the school staff.

“Alright everyone. Thank you for your cooperation so far. We’ve made an account of everyone and their conditions. So now we will be distributing ether suppressants to those with the lowest aptitude. And anyone showing signs later will be treated as well. Anyone not displaying signs will have to tough it out.” The announcer said.

Just then a couple of people came into the auditorium whilst rolling a cart holding the medicine. One by one those with low aptitude began to rise from their seats and down towards the carts.

“Everyone, I’d like to remind you that it is important to stay calm no matter what happens as fear can cause your corruption to increase. There is no need to worry as we are safe in the shelter.” The staff member said.

“Alright bro, let’s get you that medicine,” Belle said as she tugged on Wise’s arm.

“It might be best if I don’t get it. After all, supplies are limited and I’m practically immune now. Plus who knows what it’ll do to me now with my disposition.” Wise rebutted.

Nodding in acknowledgment, Belle could see his reasoning, but rebutted nonetheless.

“Bro when you were admitted into the hospital, the doctors pumped you full of ether suppressants and you turned out fine-“ Belle recalled.

“Not to mention it’d be bad if you turned full ethereal in a room full of civilians.” Belle finished.

“That’s…a fair point. Alright let’s get this over with.” Wise said as he then looked around the room. “Actually now that I think about it. Where’s Rina?”

Walking down the steps, Belle looked around herself to confirm the absence of the ghost maid before responding.

“She was helping the school staff right? She does have a diverse set of skills.” Belle responded.

After waiting in line for a solid minute, the siblings finally made their way to the front of the line where they asked for more information as they got their shots.

“Excuse me miss? Have you seen a tall gray haired woman, notably wearing a maid uniform?” Wise incurred.

With a bright smile the helper practically gushed at the mention of the maid.

“Oh yes. The super beautiful and dependable Ms.Rina. She was really helpful when the disaster started. She practically took over the leadership position from our school’s hollow disaster leader. If I recall correctly she said she was going to help prepare a meal for everyone in the kitchen.” The helper said.

Upon hearing the last bit of news, all color drained from the sibling’s faces as they imagined an entire room full of bodies with black liquid dripping from their mouths.

“Oh no! Which way is the kitchen! We have to stop her before a disaster happens.” Belle panicked.

Shaking her shoulders, Wise snapped Belle out of her delusions.

“Calm down Belle, we should probably tell Ellen. She can probably keep Rina in check.” Wise said calmly. Internally however, he was cringing at the thought of destruction Rina could cause in a kitchen.

“Ok alright. You’re right bro. Let’s go quickly before anyone falls victim to her taste testing.” Belle said.

Quickly making their way up the stairs, the siblings urgently warned Ellen and Corin of the imminent disaster.

“Bad news! Rina is preparing everyone’s food.” Said Belle upon reaching the group. Immediately the two members of Victoria Housekeeping jumped to their feet in urgency.

“Wait a sec Corin. You should stay here and rest up in case anything else happens. I’ll go dispose of Rina’s witch's brew.” Ellen said as she walked towards the proxy. Grabbing Wise’s arm she then tugged him along a short distance before turning back towards everyone else.

“And I’m taking him with me to break the news to Rina,” Ellen said with a sharp glare that dared anyone to make a comment.

“I guess it can’t be helped then,” Wise said with a sigh. Heading out through the main lobby door the two everyone else to their own devices.

Watching the two leave silently, it wasn’t until the doors closed did the girls go into gossip mode. Ganging up on Belle, they would then ask questions about the relationship between the two which fired up Belle’s own girly side.

Walking down the hallway, Ellen and Wise walked silently as Ellen led the way to the second floor where all of the supplies were kept. Every now and then Ellen would glance towards the proxy who was doing his best to avoid eye contact.

Opening a door that led down towards a stairway, Ellen motioned Wise to enter first before closing the door behind them. After going down the set of stairs, she would then grab Wise by the arm before pinning him to the wall.

“Wha! Ellen? What are you doing?” Wise asked, confused. Still he refused to look her in the eyes.

“You know, I've noticed that you haven’t been yourself lately. We’ve all noticed. So spill, what’s going on with you?” Ellen asked seriously, but released her grip on him to give him more breathing room.

Unsure of what to do or how to get out of this situation, Wise weighed his options.

(Ellen is a good friend of mine. Maybe she can keep a secret. It would be nice to have more people to rely on. But she is ultimately a member of Victoria Housekeeping and I feel like maybe they’re hiding something from me. Aww man, if only Belle were here, she could get me out of this situation. What to do or say.) Wise thought.

Choosing to risk it, Wise then looked Ellen in her eyes causing her to be visibly alarmed.

“Y-you’re eyes, they’re glowing!” Ellen said in shock. Raising a hand up to brush the hair away, she leaned in and took a closer look into his glowing eyes.

“Yeah, they are, aren't they?" Wise joked. “The corruption is getting to me, but at a slightly faster pace than Belle’s.” Wise explained.

(Ok that was smooth. I can work with this. Now to keep up the lie.) Wise thought.

Checking his neck and feeling his forearm, Ellen looked over the proxy for any other signs of corruption.

“Why didn’t you say anything earlier? You even got a shot of ether suppressants too. How can you stay so calm about this?” Ellen said with an increasingly worried voice.

Grabbing hold of her hands, Wise stared deeply into her eyes. “Ellen. I’m going to be okay. I survived a while in the last Hollow I was in. I can probably last the same amount of time in this one.”

“You almost drowned and were unconscious.” Ellen countered as she easily freed herself from his grip.

“But I lived. The corruption won’t get to me. Not yet. I'm sure Pub Sec are already halfway done with evacuating people and are on the way as we speak. So lets focus on the objective for right now and if anything goes wrong-” Wise said before all lights in the stairwell turned off.

“Oh you’ve got to be kidding me.” Wise said in disbelief. Of course luck wasn’t on his side today.

“You know, you tend to get into these kinds of situations, proxy.” Ellen commented. Grabbing his hand, she guided him down towards the second floor of the bunker and proceeded to feel the wall for the door.

“Yeah, strangely enough it started to happen around four months ago when me and Belle met all of you guys.” Wise said as he held the door open for Ellen to go through. Then the slight sound of a hard object scrapping across concrete caught his attention. Looking back up towards the stairs leading up, Wise paused to see if he could hear it again. Believing he was just imagining it, he turned back towards Ellen.

Gazing into the darkness, the two looked down the hallway for any signs of light yet spotted none.

“Stay close proxy, I can see pretty well in the dark, but you might get lost if you don’t stick close.” Ellen ordered.

Nodding along, Wise reached out to hold Ellen’s hand which surprised her at first as she quickly pulled her hand away.

“Oh, I'm sorry if I startled you. I thought that holding onto a part of you would be the best course of action so that I wouldn’t get lost. I didn’t mean anything by it, I promise.” Wise said in a hurry.

Hearing Ellen grumble he felt really bad for his impulsive actions.

“You didn’t have to promise anything dumbass,” Ellen whispered to herself, speeding up her footsteps, she walked down the hall.

“Uh? Did you say something?” Wise asked innocently as he did his best to keep up with her pace.

“I said come on. We need to get to Rina before someone gets food poisoning” Ellen all but yelled. Walking a few paces down the hall, she squinted in the darkness as she tried to make out the writing on the doors to find the kitchen area. Sure she could make out the outline of stuff pretty well, but she still needed to get really close to read anything.

As she walked from door to door the sight of light casting a shadow on the wall caused her to snap her head backwards towards the source with bloodthirsty eyes.

“I just realized we could have used the light on our cell phones to light up the way. Sorry for startling you Ellen.” Wise said with a slight smile.

(Why didn’t I think of that?) Ellen thought as she wiped out her own phone. Turning on her own phone, she used it to navigate the hallway, turning from corner to corner in this underground maze, the two would eventually make their way to the kitchen area.]

Knocking first to let their presence be known, the two then turned the knob and opened the door. Inside a small mountain of bags laid on the center table yet no signs of life were in sight.

“Oh no, do you think we’re too late?” Wise asked in dismay.

“No, all the food is still here.” Ellen said as she picked up one of the bags. Looking it over revealed that the bags were actually MRE.

“Ready made meals huh? I was expecting an actual kitchen when I heard we were heading to the “kitchen area,”” Wise said as he observed the different types of MREs.

(I should probably sneak a good one for Belle. Egg noodles in curry sauce huh? Yeah that’s the one) Wise thought as he read over the packages. Then a thought occurred to him.

“It’s more cost effective to store things that don’t expire easily in a bunker than to keep fresh produce. We call it the kitchen area because we do keep some cafeteria food supplies here when there’s a surplus and the room does have at least one oven and the bare minimum of kitchen ware.” Ellen explained.

“Well if this room is actually capable of cooking something then we do have something to worry about-” Wise said before he noticed a pungent smell in the air.

“Wait a second, do you smell that?” Wise said as he continued to sniff the air.

Sniffing the air herself, Ellen with her keener sense of smell located the source of the odor. “Yeah I do actually. It’s coming from over there.” Ellen pointed.

Over one of the burners a single pot was present. With a rumbling lid, Wise and Ellen hesitantly approached. After opening the lid did they recoil from its contents.

Inside was a thick purple liquid with a fish, a bone and an eyeball sticking out of the surface. The sight and smell alone was enough to make Wise puke had he not been distracted by the sound of a metal clattering against the ground.

Alerted and ready for battle, Ellen approached the source of the noise. Finding an overturned metal bowl on the ground she promptly picked it up.

As she did so however, the bowl flew out of her hand as a creature sprung out from beneath the bowl and hovered in the air. Quickly catching the bowl out of the air, Ellen swatted the airborne creature with a bang.

Following up on Ellen’s attack, Wise shined his phone’s light on the downed enemy to reveal Anastella clutching her head.

“What do you think you’re doing little shark!? Are you trying to take me out? Because I’ll make you sleep with the fishes first” The bangboo screeched.

“Ah it’s just you Drusella. Sorry.” Ellen said unapologetically.

Creeping behind the two, a ghostly figure poked Wise on the cheek with a finger causing him to yelp out loud.

“Got you manager~” Rina said with a playful smile. Floating around to pick up her downed bangboo.

Checking her pot of mysteries, Rina gave a satisfied smile as she promptly held it by its handles.

“All done. I’m sure this would put a spring in everyone’s step if they tried my home cooking.” Rina said happily, much to the two’s dismay.

“Crap, what do we do now?” Wise whispered loud enough for Ellen to hear as he leaned into her.

Grumbling, Ellen mumbled to herself before she eyed the pot with resolve in her eyes.

“I’d hate to do it, but it looks like I’m going to need to take one for the team.” Ellen whispered back.

With wide eyes, Wise looked shocked as he understood her intentions.

“You don’t me-“ Wise said as Ellen finished his sentence.

“Yeah, you find a way to distract her whilst I clean the pot.” Ellen said.

Gulping, Wise nodded in agreement as he walked up to Rina. Taking the pot out of her hand, he then looked her in the eyes with a serious face.

The intense look caused the maid to blush as she was caught off guard by the proxy’s actions.

“Wise? What are you-,” Rina said with a gasp as Wise had cupped her cheek.

Using his free hand, Wise then wrapped his arm around Rina’s waist as he forced her to take a few steps backwards until her back hit the edge of the table.

Softening his expression to one of concern, he then spoke his honest thoughts about the maid.

“You know Rina, I know as the head maid of Victoria Housekeeping, you always have to serve your clients perfectly. But right here and now, away from everyone else’s eyes. I want you to depend on me instead of pushing yourself so hard. Let me take care of you as you’ve taken care of me.” Wise said seriously yet gently.

As Rina listened to every word, her gaze became more distant, her eyes growing dreamy and her words lost to his.

Before anyone else could speak, Ellen had slammed down an empty pot beside them with a heavy clang. With all eyes on her, she wiped her mouth clean with an annoyed glare.

“So sorry to interrupt, but I finished eating.” Ellen said irritably.

Shocked, Rina hovered over the pot as she searched for something that wasn’t there.

Happy that their plan succeeded, Wise leaned into the girl once more. “Good job Ellen. You are the unsung hero in this scene.” Wise whispered only to revive a glare back.

"Oh… my soup.” Rina sulked.

“Hey now that I think about it, where is everyone Rina? Why are you here alone?” Wise said to change the subject. Although it was also out of curiosity as he and Ellen hadn’t encountered a soul since leaving the auditorium.

Humming, Rina rested a finger in her chin as she looked towards the ceiling.

“The other helpers were spooked when the power turned off, so they all headed down towards the third floor where the power grid is to turn it back on.”

“All of them?” Wise repeated.

“Yes, none of the school's faculty have any background in electronics so they’re reading the manual to restart the grid.” Rina explained.

As if listening in, a muffled voice spoke from an unknown source.

“Oh! That’s me, one moment master proxy.” Rina said as she summoned a radio from underneath her skirt.

“Hello?~” Rina answered.

“Please help me,” a hushed, but scared sounding voice said from the other end. Immediately everyone in the room grew tense at the sound of the woman’s voice.

“I’m sorry, can you explain? What exactly do you need help with?” Rina asked with a serious expression.

Rather than getting a response the sound of an inhuman shriek echoed in the background followed by the sounds of multiple screaming people.

“Oh god, oh god, oh god. They’re dead. They’re all dead. I don’t want to die.” The woman repeated before going silent.

After another moment of silence Rina repeated into the radio.

“Hello? Miss, are you still there” Rina asked. Another moment of silence and the three began to lose hope in the woman’s survival until the sound of heavy breathing came through the radio.

“It’s me. Help me please. I managed to sneak past the ethereal and hid in a closet, but something’s off. This ethereal is different.” The woman whispered.

However, her attempts to hide were for naught as a bang emanated from the door of the closet.

“Oh no! I think it found me. Please help me. I don’t want to die! I don’t want to- aaaah!” The woman screamed as a groan-like roar drowned out any other audio through the radio.

“Ellen, Rina, we need to get down to the third floor quickly and take care of this threat before it finds its way into the auditorium.” Wise ordered.

Nodding along the two maids made their way towards the door leading outside.

Along the way however, Ellen shared her thoughts on her fighting capabilities.

“Ah, I wish I had my scissors with me. Maybe I can borrow Corin’s chainsaw. Or have Corin do the work instead.” Ellen said as she noticed something in the corner of her eye.

“I’m sorry Ellen, but we’re kind of pressed for time at the moment. Well if anything I suppose Rina should be enough to take care of it.” Wise said. Placing his trust in the head maid, Wise unknowingly soured Ellen’s mood.

“Oh well I’m glad to be of service to you manager. I’ll be sure to take care of this ethereal in no time with you supporting me~.” Rina said teasingly.

“I’ve got a better idea,” Ellen said as she twirled a set of long kitchen knives in her hands. Tossing the knife into the air and using her lightning fast reflexes she showed off her dexterity.

“Gotta be flexible and use whatever is at your disposal right?” Ellen said with a toothy grin.

Nodding, the three then headed outside and down the flight of stairs leading to the third floor.

With Wise illuminating the way with his phone’s light, the three marched on silently as they listened for any signs of movement.

Using Anastella and Drusilla to scout ahead, the three immediately found strange markings on the wall and busted down doors. Investigating the scene, they first analyzed the markings on the wall. Pressing his hand up against the distorted area, Wise found that the surface was thinner in one area and thicker in another. Pressing harder, the puffed up area gave way to pressure.

“Strange, it’s like the wall melted, but there’s no sign of the substance responsible for it.” Wise said as he gazed into the melted wall.

Peeking over his shoulder, Ellen noticed a small but crucial detail that she revealed to the group.

“Hold on, look there,” Ellen said as she pointed at the layers of the wall.

“Underneath the paint, there’s another layer of something followed by what looks like concrete.” Ellen pointed out.

Checking it out for himself, Wise broke up a piece of the wall and crushed it with his fingers. Watching the paint and the unknown layer break apart in his hand, he realized just exactly what it was.

“Porcelume. And an ultra thin layer at that.” Wise said as he figured out a crucial detail.

Catching on just as quickly, the two maids realized the reality of the situation.

Now more annoyed than ever, Ellen crossed her arms as she looked towards the direction of the auditorium.

“Right, we need to wrap things up quickly here and get everyone outside. As soon as possible.” Wise said with a plan in mind.

“Wait a moment. If I may interrupt, why don’t we evacuate all the citizens now?” Rina asked.

“According to Ellen’s friends, the gate to the shelter operates by pulling a lever in the security office, but without electricity we can’t operate it.”

“Oh I see, but if that’s the case, couldn’t I just use my own discharge?” Rina pointed out by summoning a small amount of electricity in between her fingers.

Thinking about it for a second, Wise thought the idea could work, but there were a few risks involved.

“I’m not confident in rewiring cables in this context, but if it’s similar enough to that of a bangboo then we can give it a shot. But let’s keep that up as a backup plan just in case.” Wise explained.

Accepting his answer, Rina then hovered away from the wall and towards the broken down doors to examine the dents.

(The door is broken down but the smashed area isn't as dented as it should be if it was a powerful strike. Not to mention there are multiple scratches on the top of the door.) Rina thought to herself.

Shortly afterwards, Wise joined her as well. “What do you think?” He asked.

“It seems to be a medium to large sized ethereal, not quite strong, but definitely has enough weight. A brute type perhaps?” Rina summarized with a finger in the air.

“I think it’s safe to assume that whatever broke down the door also melted the wall. But still, what kind of ethereal do we know that can corrode building materials?” Wise asked as he thought of all the ethereals in his personal database.

“We don’t. It’s a new type of ethereal never before seen.” Ellen said as she held her nose after coming out of a room down the hall.

Rising to their feet, the maid and the proxy made their way towards the shark quietly in the event that the enemy they were looking for was closer than they had originally thought.

“And what makes you say that Ellen? Did you happen to find the Ethereal?” Wise whispered just loud enough for his company to hear.

Without responding Ellen turned around and motioned for the two to enter the room she regretted going into. Upon entering the room, the two gagged as a thick, foul odor assaulted their nostrils and enveloped their bodies.

Gasping in horror, the two couldn’t believe their eyes as the corpses of multiple people were fused to the ceiling in a massive cluster of fauna and what appeared to be black flesh. Visibly dripping from the cluster was a sticky brown mucus of unknown origins that seemed to be the source of the smell.

Upon closer inspection, the bodies of the diseased were barely recognizable as the flesh on their faces looked as if it was either gnawed off by some creature or melted off similar to that of the wall outside.

Taken aback, but still focused, Wise took out his camera to document his team’s findings for future references and continued to lead the maids towards their goal.

Placing a hand on Rina’s shoulder and giving it a light squeeze, Wise waited for her to look towards him before motioning towards the ceiling. Pointing directly at the two whose faces were still barely recognizable as well as the pictures on their lanyards, he inquired about the identity of the victims.

“Rina, the people on the ceiling. Are they the ones who said they would go and fix the generator?” Wise asked gently. Although he knew the maid was a capable agent and a professional amongst professionals in her industry, he couldn’t help but worry regardless of the fact as he always thought of the woman to be more of a civilian despite her combat capabilities.

Unable to discern the identity of the people, Rina hovered closely to take a look at their Id and clothing before floating back down with her eyes closed.

“That they are proxy. They are indeed the school’s faculty that came down here to fix the generator. Although originally there were four members meaning one is still missing.” Rina explained with an unreadable expression. It was neither sadness nor anger, but a practiced face that only shows what needs to be seen and nothing more.

“Then let's keep moving. If I saw the layout of the building correctly then the 4th floor is actually very small. The generator should be at the end of the hall.” Wise said as she carefully peaked outside the classroom for any signs of life.

“Understood,” the maids said in unison. Going back to their original position, the two boxed the proxy in with Ellen in the vanguard position and Rina watching their backs silently. After making their way towards the end of the hall, Ellen cracked the door to the electrical room open just slightly enough to peek inside.

After finding no signs of a threat, she motioned that the coast was clear and threw the door open casually. Walking inside she examined the room intently for any signs of the Ethereal. But instead she found a massive hole in the ceiling as well as the same brown goo from the other room.

“Well, that explains why we can’t find it on this floor,” Ellen said, annoyed. The presence of the human leg would mean the group would have to do more walking and climbing to find their target.

“Ok we’re here and there’s no sign of the last survivor. At least we can restart the power now that we’re here,” Wise said. Finding the manual on the ground, he picked it up to give it a quick read. After a bit of time familiarizing himself with the generator’s model he began to tinker with the wires and with a push of a button it began to hum intensely.

Immediately the lights of the room and by extension the rest of the bunker lit up. Slapping a hand on his back, Ellen congratulated the proxy for his job well done.

“Way to go proxy, looks like rewiring bangboo really paid off.” Ellen said.

“As expected of you manager, now that we have the lights on, it should be much easier spotting our targets,” Rina commented.

Their short victory would be short lived however as a long monstrous roar coming from down the hall caught their attention. Next thing they knew, the sound of something heavy being dragged across the floor made its way towards their location.

“Looks like we found our culprit,” Wise said. Getting ready to engage in battle, Ellen walked forward with her kitchen knives in hand as Rina hovered shortly behind.

Hearing the ethereal get closer and closer, the three waited in anticipation as the monster seemed to be just around the corner. But rather than peeking out with its head to arms, instead a tendril shot against the wall at the end of the hall followed by many more.

“Huh?” Ellen let out as she had no clue what exactly she was looking at. Continuing its progression, the ethereal finally came into sight as it retracted its tendrils in order to pull its body along the ground.

Groaning and moaning, the large grotesque looking ethereal revealed itself to be a large wriggling caterpillar-like monster with what appeared to be holes all around its body.

Turning her head in grotesque, Ellen visibly looked grossed out as Wise snapped photos of the enemy for his database.

As he zoomed in on the ethereal he noticed two lumps of metal sticking out off the creature's back. Looking closely, he recognized the pattern as clothing worn by Rina’s bangboo companions.

“Those things got Anastella and Drusilla on their backs. From the looks of it, they can’t get free.” Wise said directly to Rina who narrowed her brows into a glare.

“Well then Ellen, shall we take care of this rude master?” Rina said coldly. After receiving a nod the two immediately dashed towards the foe who responded with another roar.

Standing on its hind legs, the ethereal leaned back before slamming its upper body back down, what followed was a series of tendrils shooting out of the holes on its body.

Narrowly dodging the tendrils, Ellen watched as it shot across the room just inches from her face. Being on the ground, Ellen had to be more careful to not get caught by the ethereal.

However, it was no problem for the girl as she sliced through much faster projectiles. Rina on the other hand didn’t have as much trouble as she flew through the air away from the ethereal’s range.

What the two didn’t realize however was that the initial tendril that almost connected with Ellen managed to snatch Wise as he let his guard down from his position.

After being hit in the chest by the ethereal’s tendril, Wise had the wind knocked out of him. But before he could voice for help, the tendril retracted back at astonishing speeds, knocking him to the ground in the process.

“Guh!” Wise mouthed as he was dragged along the ground by the ethereal. Hearing the proxy in trouble, Rina let her guard down as she looked back towards the downed proxy resulting in her being caught herself. With tendril’s wrapping itself around her body, she was pulled in towards the main body.

“Rina!” Ellen screamed as she sliced another tendril that shot out towards her. Chasing after the maid in trouble, Ellen stopped in her tracks as Rina had issued a new command.

“No! Help the proxy! I will manage," Rina grunted in the ethereal’s grasp. Stopping in her tracks and skidding along the ground, Ellen quickly sliced her knives through the air and severed the connection between the proxy and the ethereal.

As Rina was pulled along by the ethereal, she began to spark with electricity as she electrocuted the tendrils, burning it in her grasp. Whilst the tendrils were still connected to the ethereal, a light current of electricity traveled along the tendril and zapped the for causing it to spasm out of control.

With no way else to contribute to the battle without triggering his transformation, Wise could only do his best not to get in the way and so made his way into the nearest room.

From his vantage point, he watched as Ellen quickly hacked her way towards the ethereal and Rina stunning it in the process.

Using his camera to document the battle, he then noticed a crucial detail. The brown fluid in the mass of flesh and hole in the generator room was emanating from the skin of the ethereal, presumably to assist it with getting around.

But another liquid was also seeping from the caterpillar’s mandibles. This time it was greener in color and notably melted in the floor. Alarmed, Wise quickly informed the two of a new attack pattern yet to be seen.

“Ellen! Rina! Watch out, it looks like it can spit acid from its mouth!” Wise screamed.

Growing enraged at being unable to catch the maids, the foe changed its attack pattern from catching prey with its tendrils to confirming Wise’s suspicion by spraying its acid breath in their direction.

Using her superb agility, Ellen successfully dodged the attack by diving into one of the rooms. Rina however was not as lucky as she was near the ceiling.

Rather, she generated as much electricity as she could and fired off an electro ball towards the enemy. Knowing that it wouldn’t be enough to protect herself as the acid can turn into vapor in the air, she then dove towards the ball and protected her face with her hands.

In the end, thanks to her quick thinking, she managed to escape with minor injuries, but at the cost of ruining her uniform. With the acid melting holes all over her body, her arms, legs and belly were partially exposed.

However, she wasn’t completely safe yet as she was still free falling towards the enemy. Yet this did not deter the head maid of Victoria Housekeeping as she was anything if not adaptable.

Using her heel to deliver an underwhelming stomp kick, before shifting her body to press off of the palm of her hand. Before she used her palm to kick off the enemy however, she first delivered a powerful electric shock seeing as she’s already connected with the ethereal.

Regaining her footing in the soft yet durable back of the ethereal, she then lunged for one of her bangboo and managed to grab hold of Drusilla.

Pulling with all her might, she was unable to completely free the bangboo from the caterpillars grasp however as a tendril kept the bangboo from escaping.

Not wanting to retreat empty handed, Rina delivered another electric charge downwards, the attack threatened to damage Drusilla and Anastella as well, but the reward outweighed the risk.

With an intruder on its back, the caterpillar thrashed about and crashed into the walls in order to shake off the maid. Whilst it was distracted, Ellen took this opportunity to close the distance and hack away at its soft underbelly.

Reeling in pain, the caterpillar ethereal displayed an advanced level of intelligence by shooting its sticky tendrils up onto the ceiling and raised its body off the ground before dropping back down.

The impact of its body was strong enough to heavily shake the ground underneath it and threw Rina off with Drusilla in hand.

This attack did not deter Ellen however as she continued to hack and slash at its squishy body. When the ethereal wanted to reaped back and dove towards Ellen.

Not even phased, Ellen jumped towards the side of the descending ethereal as she dug her knives into its side. Allowing the foe to do all the work for her, her knives easily created a large gash along the side of the ethereal.

Now halfway along its body, Ellen jumped onto its back and sliced apart the tendril holding onto Anastella and promptly jumped forward towards the ethereal’s rear.

“It’s about time,” the little bangboo cried out.

With the ethereal’s brown fluid covering the floor where it first emerged from, Ellen, having jumped off the ethereal rear, slid down the hall as she struggled to not fall and ruin her outfit.

“Ah, whoa! Oh man, my shoes are going to stink after this.” Ellen complained with Anastella in her arms. Knowing that Rina needs both bangboo in order to access her full powers Ellen threw Anastella towards the maid and proxy.

With the two bangboo reunited with its owner, the three hovered in the air with much more electricity emanating from their bodies.

“I can’t say I’ve had a good time cleaning up after you young master, so let’s finish this shall we?” Rina said with a raised hand.

As if she was declaring for the executioner to drop the guillotine, Rina lowered her hand with dramatic flare. From the tips of her fingers a much larger ball of energy formed with the two bangboo flying around it in order to build up more power.

After the electro ball connected with the ethereal, it zapped and charged the full in a bright blue light that illuminated the hallway.

Squealing in pain , the ethereal fought the numbing pain in order to retreat into the classroom with the three corpses, but not before dropping something from within its mounds of flesh.

“Rina, don't let it get away!” Wise ordered. Since they weakened the ethereal this much, they have the opportunity to exterminate it before it can recuperate and go after civilians.

“Roger,” Rina said with a nod. Quickly hovering into the doorway, Rina paused as a loud sound along with debris began to fly out in her direction. Glancing inside, she was shocked to see the ethereal burrowing a hole into the sealing.

Not wanting to let it escape she was about to chase but instead fell to her knees. Feeling weak, Rina gasped on the floor resulting in Wise dragging her back into the hall.

Holding her in his arms, Wise noticed that Rina developed purple spots all over her exposed skin. Feeling a burning sensation in the palms of his own hands he partially let go of Rina to find that the same spots were present on him.

Putting together the why and how, he theorized that the reason for this sudden condition was tied to the substance on Rina’s clothing.

As Wise worriedly tried to think about what to do ether crystals began to form over his spots. Realizing that he would be ok thanks to his other half, he was free to focus his efforts on the weakened maid.

Grabbing hold of the item the ethereal dropped, he moved his other hand underneath her legs, Wise picked Rina up in his arms and began to reconvene with Ellen who had gone missing.

“Mhm, manager? What are you?” Rina mumbled out in her weakened state. Looking up to the proxy, her vision was blurry and her voice was weak, but her pride as a maid told her that she should be dignified at all times.

Sensing her intent, Wise quickly shut her down before she could struggle in her grasp.

“Shh. Rina, you’ve done enough. You’re not well right now so let me repay your kindness after all you’ve done for me.” Wise said in reassurance.

Using his slightly enhanced strength, he tightened his hold on the maid and to make sure she was comfortable he rested her head in the crook of his neck.

“But I’m a maid, I should be serving you.” Rina said blushing. Making sure that he couldn’t see her face, she lowered her gaze.

Rather than stepping in the slick, mucus covered ground, Wise hugged the walls of the hallway where the caterpillar ethereal did not traverse on.

Drawing the beautiful maid in his arms closer to his face, he readjusted his grip.

“A maid who works hard on the clock deserves to be pampered just as much off the clock. You’re not just a maid to me Rina, you’re a very important person. So let me serve you, sometime.” Wise said with a gentle smile.

As his words left his mouth, Rina who had barely struggled stopped fighting altogether as she wrapped her weak arms around his neck and made a sound of consent.

(Phew, truthfully I don’t think I can last much longer, I need to find Ellen fast and get back to Belle and the rest.) wise thought with sweat dripping down his temple.

With his inactive body, Wise struggled to handle Rina as there was too much women for him to handle.

After turning the corner of the hallway, Wise and Rina found Ellen struggling to stand up straight as her shoes were covered in mucus.

“Ah.” Ellen said as she caught the sight of Rina in Wise’s arms. Rather than being annoyed by the sight, she instead showed a rare look of concern as she spotted the spots on Rina.

Rushing up to the two as best as she can, Ellen reached to check Rina over before Wise held out a hand to stop her from proceeding.

“Stop, it seems that the Ethereal’s acid attack was laced with poison. You shouldn’t get too close or else you could be infected too.” Wise explained.

“If that were true, then why aren’t you affected?” Ellen rebutted.

“It does affect me, but it seems I can handle it just fine. But that’s not important, now that the power is back on, we need to evacuate everyone due to the-“ Wise explained before Ellen finished his sentence.

“Because of the lack of porcelume in the walls of the bunker, yeah I got it. Alright, I’ll lead the way,” Ellen said as she made her way towards the stairs. As the three made their way towards the auditorium, Ellen noticed a familiar looking object in the proxy’s hand.

“Hey, what’s that thing you got there?” Ellen asked. The shape of the object looked to be like a card of some sort and the color scheme seemed oddly familiar.

“Oh, I picked it up after that ethereal dropped it. I haven’t gotten the chance to examine it yet, here take a look.” Wise responded as he stuck the card out towards Ellen. Taking it out of his hands and examining it for herself, her eyes widened slightly.

Flipping the card over to face the proxy, she revealed that it was the school’s ID for a student. To be precise, it was the ID of Chance whom they last saw before the Hollow Disaster.

“Wait a minute, it wasn’t an ethereal, but a corrupted? But that’s too soon! Even if he had a low ether aptitude, the medicine would have-” Wise said before the thought of them leaving the student by himself in an underground maze.

Waning slightly, Wise felt a ping of guilt for forsaking the boy, but still that didn’t answer the question of how it happened.

“No wait, it's still too soon. We haven’t even been swallowed up for an hour yet, how could he turn so soon? There’s another variable here, but I just don’t know it yet.” Wise stated.

After a short while of walking and Ellen taking over Rina duty, the three made their way to the auditorium doors. Holding the doors open for the ladies, Wise waited patiently for them to enter, but rather than entering, Ellen stood in the doorway with an alarmed look on her face.

Knowing that it takes a lot to get a reaction out of Ellen, he feared for the worst. Taking a look for himself, Wise peeked into the room only to find a massive fauna-like cocoon mounted to the ceiling and no signs of life, no signs of Ellen’s friends and no signs of Belle.

Chapter Text

Faced with the unknown and a whole lot of missing clues, Wise couldn’t help but think the worst as what laid before him was a massive cluster of flesh and fauna fused together to form a giant cocoon on the ceiling. Upon closer inspection, various faces and limbs of people could be seen sticking out of the cluster just like on the third floor of the bunker.

What the three found on the third floor earlier must have been an incomplete attempt of the Caterpillar Ethereal at making itself a nest with the only thing lacking was both ether energy and “building material”. Regardless, seeing the Ethereal curled up and squirming inside the thin film of material was enough to know that the Ethereal was undergoing changes, an evolution that the three could not stop with their current equipment or manpower.

But the pressing issue of how to deal with the Ethereal was not what was occupying Wise’s mind. No, it was the absence of his sister Belle. He knew she could be resourceful and can take care of herself, chances were, she grabbed others and found a safe place to escape. Yet something in him kept him from fully believing that fact.

₴ⱧɆ₴ ĐɆ₳Đ, ł₮ ₮ØØ₭ ⱧɆⱤ ₳₩₳Ɏ, a voice in his head screamed out causing him to clutch his head in pain.

Collapsing to his knees, Wise couldn’t help but let the feeling of numbness wash over him. As a result of him no longer resisting the corruption, crystals began to rapidly spread across his arms and face. With a single thought occupying his mind, the alarmed words from his allies were muffled under the fear that was weighing on him.

“Proxy!” Ellen called out to no avail. Gently placing Rina down, Ellen raced to his side.

(Belle, my sister, my family, my pillar, my light. Where did you go?) Wise thought. Examining the auditorium over, Wise could piece together the events that occurred. It was likely that the Ethereal burrowed its way somewhere in the auditorium and after finding out that there were a bunch of defenseless people around, began to rampage. With the confusion from the civilians, Corin probably couldn’t engage the foe as she would risk injuring a bystander.

“Master Proxy please!” Rina managed to word out in her weakened state. Biting his own lips hard enough to draw blood, Wise trembled with panic as he began hyperventilating.

(Ever since we were young, I’d always relied on Belle. She was the reason I continued to live. For as long as I can remember it was just the two of us until our teacher took us in. But after The Fall of the Old Capital, we had nothing, nothing but each other. Day in and day out we worked our way up towards being Phaethon, during the day I would work part time and during the night we improved our proxy skills until we saved up enough to open up Random Play.) Wise thought.

With his breathing becoming unstable, he could only sit there helplessly as various memories of Belle flashed through his mind, reminding him of what he lost. Her smile, her laugh, her favorite food, all the jokes between them; they now exist only in his memory.

Ã̷̦V̵̠̈́Ę̸͆Ņ̷̋G̷̜͋E̵̳͗ ̵̱͠H̴̢̄È̷̟Ṛ̷̀, the voice in his head demanded.

With a low growl, Wise raised his gaze upwards towards the cocoon incubating on the ceiling. With hatred in his eyes, he knew he had to get rid of the threat before it could emerge as it would be too powerful otherwise. For Belle and all the innocent lives the Ethereal took, Wise swore he would avenge them all. Rising to his feet and feeling the corruption make its way downwards as if sensing his intent. Just as he was about to pounce, a harsh slap snapped him out of his trance.

Clutching his cheek, he looked up at his attacker in disbelief. Standing above him, Ellen bared her razor sharp teeth and glared at him with slight tears in her eyes. Shrinking under her gaze, Wise decided to stay down and compose himself to not set off Ellen any more than he already had.

“Proxy, you stupid idiot. Now’s not the time to lose your cool. Just look at you, your negative emotions are causing your corruption to speed up,” Ellen explained. Extending a hand to help the proxy to his feet, Ellen’s gaze softened.

“Corin’s tough and so is Belle. Until we find a body, nothing is confirmed just yet. So let’s get out of the hollow first and foremost alright? Once we get treated, we’ll come back and take out that ethereal alright?” Ellen said almost pleadingly.

(Ah, that’s right. Ruby, Lynn and Mona. They’re not here either, yet Ellen must be feeling the same way I am.) Wise thought with regret. She was right, this is no time to be full of emotions. He needed to get them out of there quickly.

“Alright, you’re right. Let’s get out of here and regroup. Luckily the hollow hasn’t been around for too long, so the way out should be pretty straightforward.” Wise explained. As he reexplained the steps they needed to take, none of them caught the movement from behind as a door creaked open.

As an eye peeked through the door, a gasp could be heard as a familiar voice all but shouted towards the group. “Hey guys! Ellen! Video Store Manager! Miss Rina! You’re all ok!”

Drawing their attention to the door leading out to the lobby, Ruby peeked into the room with a smile from behind the door.

“R-Ruby?” Ellen said with a sigh of relief. Not only was there Ruby, but a few other figures appeared right behind her.

“Bro!/Manager!” Belle and Corin said in unison. Behind them was Lynn and Mona who were just as excited to see the three safe and sound.

“Belle…” Wise said in relief. Making their way up toward the stairs and into the lobby where the girls were, the three realized that it wasn’t just them, but also a large number of survivors.

Gasping in shock, the girls panicked after seeing how far along Wise’s corruption was, but chose to check up on Ellen first and foremost. Belle on the other hand was shocked for a different reason.

Quickly Belle hurried to her brother’s side, not only to check up on him, but also to whisper into his ear so that no one else could hear. “Bro, how much longer do you think you can hold out?”

Grunting as he felt another wave of his control weakening, Wise looked down at his crystalline arms and the people around him. Knowing that it would be bad news to expose his identity here, he had to think of another way out.

“Mhm, not much longer, if need be I can sneak away and find my own way out. As long as I don’t run into any military forces, I should be good.” Wise whispered back.

“Ok, but just to be sure, you’re absolutely sure you can control yourself right? No going feral like during Port Elpis?” Belle said with worry as she recalled the way Wise moved in Eos’s footage.

“We’ll have to talk about that later. That is a whole other issue. So for now, let's go ahead and evacuate first whilst the Caterpillar is occupied.” Wise said.

Nodding in agreement, Belle shuttered as she recalled how the Ethereal appeared on stage and began grabbing people from all over the room to devour. She couldn’t recall if any other ethereal in their database had the characteristic of actually feeding on people rather than just killing them. But she wasn’t planning on sticking around long enough to find out more as everyone’s safety was her priority.

After reuniting with her friends, Ellen joined the siblings as they wrapped up their private conversation. “Alright, so what’s the plan now?” Ellen asked as Corin became responsible for Rina.

Before they could get into planning however, a figure erupted from the crowd and crouched down besides Rina.

“Oh, my dear Alexandrina. What happened to you? What could have left you in such a state?” Mr.Salieri said in dismay, yet the look in his eyes showed hunger that wasn’t lost on any of the group.

Blocking his line of sight from Rina’s compromising position, the girls lined up to form a wall, catching the teacher off guard.

“What are you young ladies doing? Move at once so I can check on Ms.Rina’s condition!” Mr.Salieri ordered.

Yet the girls refused to budge. Speaking for the group, Wise walked up to the teacher after placing his jacket over Rina.

“Ah sorry about that sir, you must be Ellen’s teacher. Sorry to say, but Rina is actually in kind of a compromising position right now with her clothes being torn. So we’d like you to keep your distance.” Wise explained.

Narrowing his glare, Salieri stood his ground as he’d rather be the one to care for Rina by holding her in his arms and showing her how capable of a man he really was.

“While I do understand your intent, as a member of the school faculty, it is my duty to help all guests and students. So I ask you again, please move out of the way.” Salieri said with a shove.

Speeding walking his way around the girls, the teacher leaned down and extended his hand to remove Wise’s jacket. But he was stopped as Wise regained his balance and swiftly grabbed the man’s hand.

“Alright let me put it like this,” Wise said as his crystals grew over his chest, showing that he was emotionally less stable.

“She’s mine. From this brief exchange, I can already tell you have a thing for Rina, but she belongs to me. So kindly stay your hand.” Wise said with his intimidating glowing eyes.

Caught in Wise’s iron grip, Salieri shrunk and lost the will to fight. As Wise let go of his grip, the teacher fell backwards before stumbling to his feet once he regained his composure.

“Ahem, I see. I’m sure you are mistaken, but I must agree that things are taken care of here. Do have a good day and I hope everyone gets out safely.” Mr Salieri said as he retreated into the crowd.

Glaring at the teacher’s retreating form, Wise shook his head in disappointment.

“Sheesh, to think that guy’s a teacher with such an obvious ulterior motive. Suddenly I feel bad for you girls. If you’d like, I could file a complaint to your school board.” Wise said. Turning back towards the girls he flinched as they all had blushes on their faces and barely contained smiles.

“What? What happened?” He asked cluelessly. Yet the girls did not give him an answer. Confused, he turned his gaze to his sister who gave him a smug look.

“She’s mine~” Belle repeated in a sing -song tone which caused the girls to giggle. Ellen on the other hand was melding, but didn’t show it.

At a loss for words, Wise crumbled under the might of the girl's piercing gaze as he attempted to protect himself.

“That’s not-I meant that-. It was just easier to pose as Rina’s lover than to let that guy do whatever he wanted. I didn’t really mean it.” Wise blurted out in embarrassment.

“Eheh, mine~” Rina said quietly. Using his jacket she covered her entire face to hide her blush.

“Ok well, let’s just move on and get back to the plan.” Wise said seriously, his tone instantly snapped the girl’s attention back to the situation they were in.

Thinking about all of the information they’ve gathered ever since the disaster started, the two proxies spoke out loud to see if they could formulate a plan with their group.

“Alright, let’s see what we know so far. We are in a new Hollow, so there shouldn’t be too many ethereals outside nor will the landscape change drastically. So, as long as we reach the edge of the Hollow or find any rescue teams, we can get out safe and sound.” Wise stated.

“Right and I'm assuming your group was responsible for getting the power back on so fast. Thanks for that by the way. So if Mona’s story is anything to go by, all we have to do is head into the Security Office and flip the switch to open the gate.” Belle said as she followed up on Wise’s explanation.

“But what would happen if we encounter ethereals? We can help look after Miss Rina, but there’s too many people for Corin to look after.” Lynn interjected. Still thinking that Ellen’s entire family were trained Hollow Investigators, the situation was looking bleak in her eyes with the always dignified Ms.Rina looking so weak.

Sighing in annoyance Ellen looked around at her various classmates before gripping tightly at her borrowed kitchen knives. “I’d rather not give myself away to anyone but you guys, but if it comes down to it, I'll fight if it means saving lives. Although I wish I had my scissors, these knives don’t have much reach.” Ellen said in annoyance. Had she had a longer weapon, she definitely could have killed the caterpillar ethereal earlier. Then there wouldn’t be as many casualties.

Falling back into silence, the group brainstormed their next step until Ruby noticed something that caught her eye. Waltzing across the room she rummaged through a black cart that looked as if it belonged to a janitor and grabbed a mop along with another object. With a smile on her face, she hopped back to the group before sharing her spoils.

“Look Ellen! If you can break the mop head off of the wooden part, then you can use it as a staff! And if you take this duck tape then you can fix your knives at the end of it to make an impromptu spear!” Ruby said excitedly much to everyone’s shock.

Grabbing the materials out of her hand, Ellen looked between the mop, the tape and her knives before returning her gaze to Ruby. “Huh, that’s actually not a bad idea,” she said in shock.

“Yeah, that actually was kind of smart of you Ruby,” Mona said in disbelief.

“The Hollows are a mysterious place.” Lynn mumbled out as she began to question reality.

Beaming with pride, Ruby rested her fists on her hips and showed a beaming smile at having her ingenuity complimented. With Ellen and friends huddling together to help build a makeshift spear, the proxies made their way through the crowd of people and into the office.

Once inside, the two immediately found the switch on the wall and a microphone connected to the entire bunker. With the equipment in hand, they can now notify everyone of their findings and hopefully have everyone on the same page for the evacuation notice.

With his finger ready to activate the microphone, Wise motioned for Belle to get ready. “Alright Belle, going live in 3, 2, 1…” Wise counted down with a finger in the air to emphasize the one.

“Ahem. Excuse me everyone can I please have your attention. It has just been discovered that the foundation of the bunker was not built with a proper layer of porcelume meaning although the corruption would be weakened, it is only protecting us by a little bit.” Belle started. Immediately the crowd grew silent as they listened on with great interest.

“Meaning that unfortunately due to the situation, we’ll have to evacuate outside and find some help. Thankfully we have a few Hollow Investigators on hand to help us navigate to the exit or at the very least to any rescue parties. The alternative is staying in here with that freaky Ethereal in the auditorium. We will not force anyone, but the choice is yours.” Belle finished. Her wording in the last sentence carried a sense of finality as if she was trying to shift the scales.

Ultimately the thought of being locked inside a bunker with an ethereal made the choice obvious. With everyone keeping their cool and forming groups, Belle gave Wise the ok to flip the switch. In response, Wise nodded back and activated the lever causing the front doors to creak open with a metallic sound before stopping only inches after opening.

Once again the people murmured as they realized what was happening. Afterwards, Wise flipped the switch back and forth hoping that the doors were just malfunctioning, but ultimately realized that it was jammed after a certain point.

“Great, the doors, broken. What now bro?” Belle asked with worry. Every now and then her eyes went back to the auditorium doors, hoping that the ethereal didn’t notice the noise. \

Massaging his head in thought, Wise tried to think of an alternative. (This isn’t a regular building so there’s probably not another exit, so what do we do now? Time is running out for everyone.) Wise thought. Just then a group of big muscular men made their way to the front of the crowd and worked together to pry the door open. Their efforts were rewarded as the door budged slightly.

Looking down at his hands and remembering the time he was partially transformed whilst defending the old woman on Sixth Street, Wise thought about the amount of strength he had and wondered if it applied here as well.

Resolved to make use of his newfound gifts, he exited the office and walked towards the gap. Seeing that he left, Belle called out to him with curiosity. Every step he took towards the crowd, the more the civilians noticed him and the closer he got, the more they parted until he reached the front.

“Excuse me, let me help you guys.” Wise asked with a calm smile.

“Yeah that would be great, we could use more strong hands-” one of the guys said before he noticed Wise and how far along his corruption was. Sneering at him, he tried to play it cool, but couldn’t hold back his animosity.

“Yeah, look stringbean. You’re probably not going to help much, so maybe you should just stay out of sight in case you turn into an ethereal. It might just be the best course of action.” The man said with a grunt.

Raising his crystal encased arms up to his eye level Wise didn’t flinch at the man’s words as he understood the amount of stress he’s causing for everyone around him, but he wouldn’t let that deter him.

“Look, I'm corrupted, meaning my physical strength is temporarily elevated. We could use all the help we could get so there’s no need to brush me off. We need to work together to get out of this mess.” Wise explained.

“What you need to do is back-off” The man tried to say before the sound of a chainsaw caught everyone’s attention. Standing not too far from them, Corin did her best to glare at those who looked down on the proxy.

“I will not take no for an answer. Work together or else.” Corin said briefly as she knew she would lose aura points if she stuttered.

Not wanting to mess with the chainsaw maniac, the men wordlessly made room for Wise to join. Taking up his position he exerted his strength as a test run and felt the bunker doors open just slightly under the weight of his strength.

Gasping from his exertion, Wise knew they could do it if they worked together. “Alright everyone, we can do this. 3, 2, 1, Go!” Wise yelled for everyone to hear. With grunts and a battle cry, the men pulled with all their might with some civilians grabbing hold of their waist to help them as well and after a lot of effort, the doors swung open causing everyone to cheer at their teamwork.

Their cries would die down immediately as they found a pile of corpses just outside the bunker and puddles of blood oozing towards them.

With great regret, the civilians grieved their death and held a moment of silence for the fallen as they knew just how easily they could have lost their lives.

With the doors opened, the civilians formed three lines as they headed up the stairs with Corin and Ellen leading the group along with the staff members keeping everyone in line.

Waiting their turn at the back of the line, Belle and the girls supported Rina as Wise struggled to keep himself from transforming.

Noticing this, Ruby jabbed Belle on the arm as she nodded towards him.

“Hm? Oh! Hey bro, just a bit longer alright?” Belle said in reassurance. If need be she could cover for Wide if he went “missing.”

“Just a bit longer huh? Knowing my luck recently, I’m going to probably get dragged away by that ethereal back there.” Wise said jokingly. Despite that however, he did in fact turn his head to make sure the caterpillar didn’t creep up on them.

Peeking out from the steps, Ellen and Corin expertly surveyed the area for any signs of danger before motioning the people to follow.

Scouting ahead, Ellen took care of any stragglers that were unfortunate enough to be in her way as Corin stayed with the group to defend them from harm.

After a little while of walking with no problems, they neared the clearing designated for the food stalls during the festival, but were abruptly stopped by Ellen as she returned from scouting. The expression on her face was harder than usual.

“Ms.Ellen?” Corin questioned. Taking a look for herself, the little maid gasped at what she saw. Patrolling the once lively food stalls were a small army of beholder engines. All of which had leveled the stalls into a ruined mess and littered the ground with what she assumed as the rescue party.

“Shhh. Change of plans, we need to find a place to hide everyone until help arrives. There are too many of them for us to take on, especially when I just have a makeshift weapon. Go relay the message to the school's faculty, I’ll see if I can bust open a door or something.” Ellen said to Corin.

But her plan would soon be foiled as an impatient civilian yelled out from his place in line.

“Hey! What’s taking so long? Move it otherwise I’ll just find my own way out!” An impatient man yelled from the middle of the line. His booming voice echoed off of the silent buildings and spread throughout the school causing various roars to break out.

“Crap.” Ellen muttered as she wasted no time opening a nearby door that led into the school’s science building. “Everyone inside now! Run and hide away from the windows, don’t make a sound. Go now!” She ordered.

Before the first person could make it inside however, she tightened her grip on her spear and sprinted towards the food stalls so fast it left the adults in shock.

|

In the back of the line, the proxy siblings were careful to signal Ellen which direction to go as Fairy calculated the most ideal route for their group. But after Ellen shouted out towards the people and sprinted off, they assumed she was using herself as bait.

“Whoa, Ellen’s intense, but where is she going? Should we follow her?” Mona asked with a step out of line. However, Belle stopped her from going off with the girls.

“We need to get inside and hide while Ellen takes out some ethereals.” Belle explained with a serious expression. Not realizing that Ellen intended to use herself as bait, the girls agreed to follow the crowd as they assumed Ellen was taking out only a few.

Shifting Rina around in her arms, Belle turned back to her brother just to find that he had already disappeared. But with the sound of crystal shattering, she along with everyone turned their sights upwards towards the noise, but found nothing. So they continued their evacuation indoors.

On the other hand, Belle continued to look around from bushes, to poles, to the roofs of the buildings until she landed her sights on a particular pillar staring back at her. With the figure dramatically waving at her, she couldn’t help but smile and wave back upon seeing her dorky brother.

As Wise no longer had a reason to hold back anymore, he allowed the ether corruption to run its course as it took over his body and transformed him into the Hollow Knight. After bidding Belle farewell, he turned his sights down onto his body as he gave himself a lookover.

(Huh, so this is what it’s like. You know, without the adrenaline or the fear of turning into a monster, this is actually pretty cool. If I remember correctly, I definitely had super strength and durability, BUt what else can I do?) Wise thought to himself as he opened and closed his armored up hand.

Seeing the rooftop parallel to his position, he wondered if he could make that jump. However, all things considered, he doubted that he would get seriously injured even if he fell so he risked the jump. So after dawning a crouching position, he sprinted with all his might, moving faster than he thought, he placed his foot on the edge of the roof and leapt as high as he could.

Now in the air he rose higher than he expected and shot 10 feet off the ground. Traveling farther than he expected, he curled up and rolled along the roof until he came to a stop.

(Whoa, that was pretty cool! This body is amazing! Wait, focus Wise. First we have to go help Ellen and see what's got her so riled up.) Wise thought. Heading over to the edge of the roof, he recoiled in shock as he saw a bunch of Ethereals claiming the once bustling food court. From his high vantage point, he noticed a bunch of Beholder Engines collapsing onto a single point.

(There she is!) Wise thought. Expertly maneuvering around the enemies, Ellen continuously sliced, parried and used her enemies as a foothold as she attempted to clean them up. However, despite her skills and fighting capabilities, the amount of foes would soon be too much for her as her weapon only left scratches on them.

“Grrr. If only I had my scissors, you guys would be toast.” Ellen complained as she dodged another body slam before stabbing her spear into the ethereal’s core; the ethereal collapsed onto the ground before evaporating into nothing.

Sure enough, the amount of enemies were slowly getting to her causing Wise to grow uneasy. (Don’t worry Ellen, I’m on the way!) Wise mentally yelled out as he jumped off the building and onto the pavement, cracking it in the process.

(Ok, first to get to Ellen and show her that I'm not the enemy!) Wise thought. With a quick sprint, he easily closed the distance as Ellen took out another beholder engine. Seeing that another one somehow got onto the roof and began diving towards the girl, Wise smashed his legs into the ground as hard as he could and leapt towards the chaos with his fist winded back.

And with impeccable timing, he threw the hardest punch he could muster up into the descending ethereal, resulting in it crashing into the ground with a bounce before disappearing. Seeing this, Ellen gave him a quick glance before bringing her spear down on another foe and with a loud crack the wooden component of her weapon broke into pieces, unable to withstand the force of her fighting style.

“A crap.” Ellen muttered out in annoyance. Not letting the fact that her weapon broke set her back, Ellen grabbed the top part of her spear and shifted it into a reverse grip before stabbing it into the core of another enemy. Afterwards she jumped on top of a charging foe and ran along its back and towards the ruins of the foodcourt, hoping that she could lose their attention amongst the terrain.

(Huh, why is she running away? Oh wait, is their attention all on me now? Wait, time out! I wasn’t ready for this. Ellen, wait!) Wise mentally cried out as the small army of ethereals split up to take out both he and Ellen.

With a lunge from the foremost member of the enemy party, Wise easily dodged it by turning sideways. (Ok, we’re doing this! Let’s see if I can do this!) Wise hyped himself up. Rushing into the group of Ethereals, he lunged at the first one he saw and threw a powerful punch that sent it flying backwards, showing that he did possess the strength similar to Anton.

Still leaning forward with his fist outstretched from his punch, another Beholder, this time on his right, swiped at him with its mighty paw. Catching the Ethereal’s attack, Wise tugged on the ethereal so that it could fly towards him before grabbing hold of its other appendage before spinning the foe around.

Using the force of his spin, Wise promptly threw the Ethereal in his hands into another foe, stunning them both in the process. With both stunned, he effortlessly shattered each of its cores with a punch. Whilst distracted, another beholder got the jump on him and attacked from behind, attempting to crush Wise, the beholder jumped on his back. Luckily, due to Wise’s monstrous strength, rather than being knocked to the ground by the sneak attack, he instead stood hunched over.

Rather than trying to shake off the Ethereal, he reached above his head with both hands and grabbed hold of the Beholder before throwing the ethereal to the ground. Following up on his attack, he punched downwards, ending the Ethereal’s life.

(Alright three down and…many more to go. On a side note, I think I’m killing it all things considered,) Wise thought. Moving around and fighting monsters in real life was far more exciting than watching agents fight from behind a screen.

Lost in thought however, Wise would soon realize why you should never let your guard down in battle as he failed to notice a barrage of ether energy hurling towards him from behind and was hurled into a pillar by the following explosion.

Now being collapsed on by an army of Ethereals, he had to think about how he was going to deal with their numbers. But when a fragment of the broken pillar landed on his head and fell to the ground, he stared at the piece with an idea in mind. Recalling how he was strong enough to pick up a vending machine easily, surely he could do the same now.

Showing why he was different from the mindless ethereals before him, he promptly jumped up and blew a hole into the top of the pillar with a punch, loosening it enough for it to fall if left alone. Wrapping his arms around the pillar, he freed it from its base and turned to his charging foes. With every ethereal that got too close, he swung his weapon and sent his foes flying like baseballs.

Exploding forward with a leap, he then brought the pillar down like a thunderbolt, hammering another foe before into the pavement. Not giving an inch, he then swung the pillar in an arc and damaged three more enemies in the process. Those with shattered armor evaporated after the barrage of attacks, whilst those that had their armor still intact got back up for more.

However, the sheer durability of the ethereals would prove to be too much as the pillar in his hands crumbled into large chunks. And with the three Beholders shaking off the damage, they kept their attack up by charging straight into battle.

Thinking quickly, Wise grabbed hold of a sizable chunk of the pillar and threw the concrete block directly into one of the beholders causing it to fall to the ground. Jumping into the air and closing the gap, he then kicked another Beholder away to deal with later.

With the last engine still on a collision course with him, he then caught the ethereal and spun it around before slamming it into the ground. With the Ethereal on its back, Wise then drove his fist deep into the Ethereal's core, neutralizing it in the process.

As he did so however, he was immediately sent flying by a headbutt from the Beholder he initially kicked away and landed in front of the Beholder he threw stones at to which it tackled him back. Now rolling, Wise jumped to his feet as he attempted to get back into the fight, but was blasted by a barrage of etheric energy once more.

Quickly recovering from the attack, Wise charged in and fought even harder as he felt his face grew hotter. Feeling as if he was humiliated, he was far more brutal with his barrage of attacks as he made short work of the three beholders who comboed him.

Panting after his short rampage, Wise felt himself losing strength the longer he fought. Yet he had no time to rest as the commotion had drawn more and more ethereals to his location. Feeling that he could keep going and relying on his advanced strength, he charged forward into the enemy, ready to keep fighting.

| With the evacuees

Rushing into the science building, the various faculty advised the evacuees to head to the upper floors to avoid being spotted by an ethereal that may pass by a window and stay quiet in the meantime until a rescue team arrives.

Yet what most people ended up doing was converging at the windows of the second floor as they heard the sounds of fighting coming from their previous path. At first they believed it to be the kick ass student that was directly leading the evacuation, but were both shocked and joyful after realizing who was fighting off the Ethereals that stood in between them and safety.

Further down the hallway of classrooms, in their own private room, Belle, Corin and Ellen’s friends watched on as another Ethereal faded away in a purple haze after receiving a fatal blow. Bouncing in place, Ruby couldn’t contain her excitement as she recorded the fight rage on.

“I can’t believe my eyes! Is that him? It is, isn't it? He’s really here! -“ Ruby said as she barraged her friends with unmatched excitement. Besides her, Mona was in her own world as if she were in a trance as she continued to watch the Knight in action.

Clearing her throat and readjusting her glasses, Lynn confirmed Ruby’s suspicions as the fighter was a popular topic amongst their school recently. With the top posts on the interknot being a clipped video of the Knight fighting at Port Elpis, his fame only grew wider.

“That’s the Hollow Knight alright. He looks just like all of the recordings made him out to be. Tall, muscular, well defined armor and super strong judging by how he’s throwing those Ethereals around.” Lynn explained with slightly rosy cheeks.

Standing besides them, Belle gave them a blank stare as she could not comprehend what she was seeing. (How does he do it? They don’t even know it's Wise in there yet he’s attracting them left and right. Man…why did Wise have to be the one with the cool powers.) Belle mentally sobbed.

Yet looking back out the window, she couldn’t help but worry whenever Wise took a hit. After Wise was sent flying into the pillar, she flinched and after being tackled from all sides, she couldn’t help but clasp her hands together and gasp.

“Wise…” Belle mumbled quietly. Seeing him in action whilst actually knowing that he was the one beneath the armor caused her to feel a sort of rift between the two. Feeling lost that her pillar of support, her brother was drifting further and further away, she clung to the image of who Wise used to be.

Deep in thought, Belle didn’t notice the person who entered the room, nor the fact that said person snuck up on the girls and slouched down in front of the window, scaring the girls in the process.

“What about him?” Ellen asked nonchalantly, yet her gaze showed that she was in fact suspicious of the Proxies as they were hiding something.

“Aaaahh. Ellen! You scared the living daylights out of us. A knock would be appreciated next time,” Ruby said whilst clutching her heart.

“Right, but also thanks for leading everyone. Your cover won’t be blown or anything right?” Mona asked with worry.

“No don’t worry, I made sure to tell the faculty that I would only be scouting ahead as I had experience being lost in a hollow. Luckily they were incompetent so they gave me the go ahead.” Ellen explained with a yawn.

Having previously fled the battlefield, Ellen eyed the Knight as he struggled to deal with the army of Beholders. At first she thought he wasn't so bad, but after a while, it was clear the Knight was an amateur fighter. Relying only on brute strength and luck, she gave him a few more minutes before he bites the dust.

As she did so however, she eyed Belle down without moving an inch from her spot. “So Belle, where’s your brother?” Ellen asked suspiciously.

Caught off guard, Belle had to quickly come up with a story for Wise so that their secret didn’t get out. And do so in a way that didn’t draw any suspicion. As the seconds passed, Belle felt the tension rise as every second passing would confirm the unspoken truth. Frantically Belle spurted out the first thought that came to mind in an attempt to hide the truth.

“H-he went to the bathroom. The corruption wasn’t the only thing he was holding in.” Belle said with a blush. Advertising her eyes to sell the lie, she hoped that Ellen would take the bait as she probably couldn’t figure out a better explanation that would convince the agent.

“Is that so?” Ellen asked incredulously. Hearing a moan from behind her, Ellen momentarily let the explanation escape her mind as she checked up on Rina who was laying on a makeshift bed of tables.

Seeing that this was her moment to distract Ellen, Belle swopped in and commented on the maid’s condition. “She’s in no condition to fight, but thankfully her condition isn’t fatal. As long as she gets treated within the next few hours, she should be right as rain.”

Narrowing her brows, Ellen felt a tinge of worry seeing the perfect maid in such a sorry state. Yet her hands are tied as she didn’t wish to blow her cover in front of the remainder of the school. If need be however, her cover be damned, she would take Corin’s weapon and eviscerate the Ethereals standing in their way.

“Whoa! No way! Look guys, it's another celebrity! And she’s blowing away all of the Ethereals!” Ruby voiced enthusiastically. WIth her phone in her hand, she had been recording the fight as soon as she got into position.

Gasping in surprise, Lynn and Monna grew hopeful after the appearance of another fighter. “No way. If she’s here, then that must mean they must be nearby as well!” Mona said just as happily as Ruby.

Nodding along, Lynn gave a small cute smile. “That’s right, if they’re here then we are as good as saved.”

Looking at the girls and then at each other, Belle and Ellen walked towards the window in confusion as they wondered who was the fighter that hyped the girls up so much. Yet as they reached the window to see exactly who it was, they had completely different reactions.

“Oh, isn’t that the pipsqueak from a while back? If she’s here then it looks like we don’t have to lift a finger,” Ellen said with a yawn. Collapsing back onto the window she lazily watched the figure jump into the air and sent a bunch of ethereal’s flying.

On one hand, Ellen was somewhat relieved as she knew the fighting capabilities of the fighter both firsthand and online as the fighter was famous for a reason. On the other hand, Belle’s blood ran cold as this was quite possibly the worst person that Wise could run into.

Watching the figure and Wise work together to take on the Ethereal’s Belle began to sweat with worry. So much so that she debated whether or not she should intervene before it's too late.

“Why, why is she here?” Belle mumbled out before watching the figure walk up to Wise innocently after finishing up the battle.

| Back with Wise

Punching another Beholder in its eye, Wise followed up with a heavy kick on another to his left. Ducking underneath a charging Beholder, Wise then punched upwards with a jump and grabbed its hind legs before throwing the enemy into the nearest enemy before being tackled to the ground.

With his arms pinned down, he crunched up his stomach and curled his legs before kicking the Ethereal off of him. Sprawling to his feet out of breath, he adopted a boxing stance. Unsure of how much longer he could keep fighting, he debated whether or not he should make a break for it.

(Haah, that’s nine Beholder’s I think? That should be enough right? Belle and the rest should be able to sneak out of the Hollow by now right?) Wise thought. Yet looking around himself, he knew he couldn’t escape easily as he was surrounded on all sides. Hyping himself back into the right state of mind, he was ready to escape the kill circle he was in by charging through one side and breaking through to freedom.

And with all of the Ethereal’s charging in at once, he knew exactly how he would do it. Once they get closer, he would jump up and take advantage that they couldn’t reach him if he were to land on their back and kick off of them before sprinting away from the civilians.

Yet the unforeseen variable in his escape plan made itself known as she descended from the skies with a roar.

“Whoooaa! Watch out! Watch out! Watch out!” The girl screamed as she jumped over the Ethereals and besides Wise. With horns peaking out of her snow white hair and amber eyes contrasting her baby blue skin, the oni readied her weapon behind her, ready to swing at a moment's notice.

Mentally gasping as he physically couldn’t do so, Wise was startled to see Soukaku beside him. And although a part of home was relieved that a member of the famous Section Six was here to bail him out of this situation, he was also fearful as it meant the other members were not too far behind her.

(Not good! I need to get out of here before Miss Hoshimi catches me. Forget about escaping unscathed. If they’re here, then I might not get out alive!) Wise thought in a panic. Ready to bounce, Wise got low to the ground and was ready to dash away, but a comment from Soukaku stopped him in his tracks.

“Boy, there sure are a lot of them. If the chief were here, this could be easy. But, since she’s not, I have to do my best for all of the civilians!” Soukaku said with a look of worry. “But hey, don’t worry! If we work together, we can take out these meanies!” Soukaku said enthusiastically.

Taking a moment to quickly process the information, Wise mentally groaned. (So the rest of Section Six isn’t here. Then if I leave Soukaku to fend for herself, she would have to fight all of these Ethereals herself.) Wise thought. Taking a look down at Soukaku, she gave him an innocent and beaming smile that was too cute for any living creature to endure. Conflicted, Wise ultimately decided to fight alongside the little oni until the threat was taken care of.

Nodding to the girl and making a sound of affirmation, he turned his back on her and raised his hands up in a boxing stance once more. Nodding in response, Soukaku readied her banner blade by unfolding it, revealing the intimidating face of an oni on her banner. Using it to taunt the Ethereals they charged in at the same time ready to tear the two up.

In response Soukaku gave them a slight smirk before pulling out a mask from her side and promptly putting it on. Seeing this, Wise immediately knew which move she was about to do as he’s seen her only using one technique whenever she brought out that mask. Jumping high into the air to avoid being caught in her whirlwind, he watched as she sucked in all of the enemies who dared to get too close.

“I am an Asura!” Soukaku roared with a quick spin attack of her blade before jumping up in the air and digging her banner in the ground. Immediately afterwards a small icy cold tornado-like attack formed around her. With all of the Ethereal’s gathered up, Wise figured he could take them all out once he landed.

Yet reality continues to remind him that he isn’t as powerful as he thought he was as he had no attack in his arsenal that could destroy all the Ethereals at once. So instead he promptly stomped down on one Ethereal, burying it in the ground before kicking off of it and towards Soukaku.

Seeing that he could use some assistance, she quickly dashed to his side and swung her blade directly behind him just in time for him to rest the soles of his feet on her banner. Finishing her swing, she propelled Wise forward into another Ethereal that he took out with a punch to the core.

As Wise freed his arm from the inside of the fading Ethereal, Soukaku made sure he wasn’t as vulnerable as last time as she watched him fight the Ethereals from afar before her intervening. Dashing to his side, she swiped away any enemies that got too close. Slashing away at the enemy and quickly unfolding her banner to send a gust of icy wind to disrupt their attacks, she expertly controlled the battlefield.

With his arm free, Wise lunged towards an Beholder on his right, leaving Soukaku to take off the one on his left. As the Beholder roared at him, he quickly showed his guts as he promptly shut it up with a right hook causing its jaw to hit the floor before kicking it from underneath. Grabbing hold of both sides, he slammed the Ethereal back into the ground before finishing it off.

Huffing and puffing, he turned back around to see how Soukaku was faring. As expected, she was having no trouble fighting off the Ethereals until one remained. Unfolding her banner, she comboed the last Ethereal before sending it flying towards him with a gust of wind. Following up on her attack, Wise dashed towards the flying Beholder and jumped into the air before smacking it out of the sky and into the ground.

As the ethereal attempts to rise to its feet, Soukaku comes in with a brutal swing that completely slices through the Beholder, defeating it once and for all. With all enemies in sight vanquished, Wise mentally sighs.

(Glad that’s over, now to get out of here before anything else happens-) Wise thought to himself before Soukaku dashed in front of him.

Leaning forward with her cute little smile and beaming eyes, she held her weapon behind as if trying to hide it before innocently asking him a question. “Hello sir! Are you perhaps the Hollow Knight everyone keeps talking about?”

Unsure of what to say, Wise thought about lying, but even Soukaku isn’t stupid enough to believe that. I mean come on, he’s fighting ethereals in a full suit of armor. Granted the armor is his flesh at this moment, but still. Unable to resist those innocent eyes that were a lethal weapon in of itself, he nodded in affirmation to her question causing her smile to grow.

“Oh good! I thought it was you. Nagi is going to be so happy when I take you in! Now she doesn’t have to work so much overtime anymore!” Soukaku said happily.

(Huh?) Wise thought. Feeling his stomach drop, the next thing he knew, he was struck on the side of the head by Soukaku’s banner and was sent flying into the ruined food stalls. Sprawling to his feet, he noticed Soukaku charging in and so he attempted to run away. But was unable to as his foot was caught up in the tattered cloth.

Normally this wouldn’t be too much of an issue, but considering that it would slow him down and make it much harder to hide, he inevitably was struck by another attack from the blue Oni.

(Gah! I need to get out of here while I still have the energy to do so. That or I need to fight off Soukaku long enough for her to give up. But why am I so hungry all of a sudden? Ethereals passively absorb ether through their skin, but why isn’t it working for me? How do I gain more power?) Wise thought.

With Soukaku not giving Wise an inch, she continued to swipe away at him with various combos. Whenever he tried to get a grip on his surroundings, she would send a cold blast of air his way to stumble him before landing a heavy hit to his chest.

After being beaten around for a while, Wise rested on all fours as he breathed in heavily. Feeling too tired to move, he eventually collapsed to the ground. With only enough strength to look up at the little blue demon approaching him, he could only accept his fate as she raised her weapon up in the air, ready to bring it down.

As Soukaku brought her weapon down on him, Wise flinched and closed his eyes, waiting for the blow to land. However, what followed was the sound of metal clashing and the surprise gasp of Soukaku. Hearing the sound of a chainsaw revving up, Wise immediately knew who stepped in to save him in the nick of time.

With Corin standing in between him and Soukaku, she brandished her loud and intimidating chainsaw. “P-please step-a-away from the Hollow Knight Ms.Soukaku.” Corin said meekly.

Having her attack repelled and recognizing who repelled it, Soukaku visibly grew angry as she shifted into work mode. “You… You’re the little maid the proxies are friends with. Nagi and the Chief needs that one over there so you need to step aside so I can bring him in.” Soukakou ordered.

Not backing down in the slightest, Corin shook her head fiercely. “I’m sorry Ms.Soukaku. But I c-can’t let you do that. Mr.Hollow Knight worked hard to save everyone here t-today so I ask you, please kindly let him go this time.” Corin rebutted.

Truthfully, Corin didn’t have it in her to stand up for the knight against such an important figure, but since Belle practically begged her to intervene, she couldn’t say no. But since she asked to keep her identity a secret, it was a lot harder to convince the oni to stand down.

Conflicted, Soukaku herself was unsure of what she should do. Fighting a friend of a friend would mean the proxies would be upset at her and it wasn’t a big deal if she couldn’t bring the Knight in today.

Yet memories of the rest of Section Six working overtime due to all of the recent Hollow Activities and the appearance of the Hollow Knight triumphed over her loyalty to the proxies.

Swinging her blade behind her, Soukaku brought out her mask once more before addressing Corin.

“I’m sorry, friend of the proxies, but this is too important for me to let go. If you won’t get out of my way… then you’ll have to face an ashura!” Soukaku warned. Dawning her mask, she then charged towards the two with her weapon trialing behind her, ready to strike down the maid.

Gripping onto her chainsaw, Corin dashed forward with her chainsaw above her head, ready to come down like a guillotine.

“Please give up Ms.Soukaku!” Corin screamed.

“Haaah!” Soukaku responded. Unfurling her banner, she then sent a cold blast of air towards Corin to disrupt her movements before spinning around and swiping at her midsection.

To her shock, Corin did stumble after being hit by the cold wave, but recovered much quicker than the oni expected and countered with her own spin strike.

As the two weapons clashed, the two girls continuously tried to push the other back as the battle became a contest of strength. Or so Soukaku thought, since she was biologically stronger than a human, she was sure she would win out in this power struggle.

But in the end, Corin wasn’t competing in a strength match, but a fight. So using her saw’s main function, she activated her weapon’s
engine and tore into Soukaku’s banner.

With the saw digging into the banner, sparks flew from the point of contact and blinded the two. However, with Corin being more used to the sparks due to the nature of her weapon, she took advantage of Soukaku’s surprise and kicked her foot in causing the oni to lose her balance.

Drawing her saw back, Corin then went in for another swipe, this time from Soukaku’s open left side. Seeing this, Soukaku showed her why she was a proud member of Section Six as she narrowly parried the income saw with a strike of her own.

What followed was a series of clashes as the two did their best to create an opening for a vital strike to end the match.

As the battle draws on and the two continually parry the others attacks, Soukaku with her ice infused blade eventually built up enough momentum to push Corin back enough for her to try to end the match.

Fanning her banner, Soukaku created an icy whirlwind around herself, yet this time the gale was much weaker than before. Seeing this, Corin dug her blade into the ground and allowed it to carry her along as she charged towards the oni.

“Uwahhh! I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Corin yelled over and over again as she got closer. With Soukaku wide open, if this attack were to land, then the oni would likely suffer a serious injury.

However, as Corin breached the weak gale surrounding Soukaku, she had fallen into the oni’s trap. Instantly freezing up, Corin was frozen in a block of ice. Unable to move, she could only watch as Soukaku jumped into the air and brought her blade down on the girl.

With the sound of ice shattering, Corin was sent flying backwards upon taking the blow. Rolling away from the initial point of impact, Corin lost her grip on her weapon as she crashed to the floor.

“Ugh,” Corin moaned in pain. Doing her best, she struggled to push herself up off of the floor, but the pain that spread throughout her body made it difficult to do so and she collapsed on the ground.

“I’m sorry…master proxy.” Corin mumbled before fading into unconsciousness. With Corin now out of the picture, Soukaku rushed before Wise and pointed her blade to him.

“Alright you, if you’re a good ethereal then you have to come with me and if you’re a bad one, then I’m going to beat you up.” Soukaku declared.

Having a hard time regaining his energy, Wise knew he was still too weak to challenge an experienced fighter like Soukaku and with Corin out of the picture, he’d have no choice but to surrender himself.

Yet he couldn’t do so, not now when so many people are depending on him. So he did the only thing he could do. He played charades.

Putting his hands on the ground in front of him and then raising them up into the air, he made a motion to surrender to the little oni.

Tilting her head slightly, her glare loosened up. “You’re giving up? Really?” Soukaku asked.

Nodding his head eagerly, Wise then made a motion to stop before pointing at Corin and then towards the civilians who watched everything unfold from the safety of the buildings.

Pondering for a moment with her fingers on her chin, Soukaku’s expression exploded when she thought of his intent.

“You can’t leave the little maid and the civilians in here so you want to insure their safety first? Is that it?” Soukaku guessed.

(Huh, she’s a lot sharper than I thought. But yes Soukaku, let’s ensure the safety of all the innocents first before anything else!) Wise thought with a vigorous nod.

Pondering once again, Soukaku debated for a second, sure she couldn’t leave all these people to die, but the Knight could easily escape whilst she was busy evacuating everyone.

“Hmm. Ok, I get what you mean. But I can’t let you go. So I’m going to keep an eye on you while we wait for- whoa!” Soukaku explained before jumping out of the way in time from a pair of knives flying towards her.

“Who?” Soukaku said as she turned to the source of the attack. But to her surprise there was no one in sight. Confused and high on alert, she continued to look around for any signs of the attacker until she shuddered at the bloodlust being directed towards her.

“Don’t turn your back on a predator,” a venomous voice whispered in her ear. Quickly turning around whilst swinging her blade, Soukaku was too late to strike as she was sent flying by a powerful kick.

(That’s!) Wise thought as he looked at his savior. Seeing her kick away Soukaku and watching the little quickly recover, Wise was both impressed yet shocked that she would take such a risk considering all the eyes on her.

“You! You’re that sleepy shark from that time!” Soukaku yelled. Clutching her head in pain, she dusted her uniform off as she rose to her feet.

Walking closer to the Oni, the figure picked up Corin’s weapon and stood protectively in front of the unconscious girl.

With a hand on her hip, she let the oni know who she was. “The name’s Ellen Joe. And I suggest you walk away before I lay down the hurt,” Ellen said with her crimson eyes glowing underneath the dark shroud of her bloodlust.

Angrily Soukaku motioned between the maids and the Knight. “Why? Why are you interfering with my duties? Section Six is supposed to be protecting the people of New Eridu, meaning I have to bring that guy in! So why are you stopping me?” Soukaku yelled.

Scoffing, Ellen gave a few practice swings of Corin’s weapon to get used to the weight difference between it and her scissors.

“Stopping you? I couldn’t care less, it’s just that if you hurt my friends, in this case Corin. Then you’re just asking for a beating.” Ellen replied.

What came next nobody expected, as the two girls readied themselves for combat, the sound of flapping and echoed between the buildings, amplifying the sound for all to hear.

Thinking it was a chopper sent in by a rescue party, everyone turned their gaze to the skies, but instead of a chopper they saw a monster. For the civilians it was another threat, but for Wise, it was unfinished business.

From the darkest depths of the bunker abandoned by the people it was for, laid an ethereal with an insatiable hunger. Once a boy that only knew how to take and get what he wanted, now he emerged as a monstrous, airborne predator- an unnatural horror bred for dominance.

Its body is encased in jagged, armored chitin. Most likely an evolutionary adaptation derived from its inability to handle melee combat in its larval form. Towering over other ethereals, this behemoth's wings span wide and beat with a deafening, hurricane-like force, stirring whirlwinds that rip through the battlefield. Every flap sends a corrosive wind laced with venomous spores, sapping the strength and will of any creature that dares stand before it.

Its glowing compound eyes shimmer with a cruel intelligence, locking onto prey with predatory focus. Massive, barbed limbs twitch with anticipation, each one capable of rending steel or pinning even the strongest monsters to the ground. At its core, a pulsing thorax radiates malevolent energy—feeding off the weakness of those it deems inferior.

No longer was it a writhing caterpillar that could only land a kill by sneaking up and grabbing people, but a weapon shaped by raw instinct and the wonders of the Hollows. With its new arsenal, this creature no longer attacks for the sake of survival—but rather to dominate and establish its territory. Its oppressive aura weighs heavily on the battlefield, draining the attack power of its enemies and reducing once-mighty foes into worthless prey before its might.

And with a low guttural roar, the airborne ethereal announced its presence to the rest of the Hollow, claiming the area as its territory. Wasting no time, Ellen rushed to pick up Corin in her arms and made a dash for the Science Building to care for Ellen as she abandoned the Knight and oni to the wrath of the new foe.

“Hey wait! We were just in the middle of something! Not that matters now…” Soukaku mumbled. Tired from her previous exchanges, Soukaku took a heavy breath of air as she prepared for an uphill battle. Truthfully she was almost out of steam from her previous exchanges, but regardless she had a duty to fulfill. If there was any time to wear the name of Special Operations Section Six it was now with so many lives on the line.

Gripping her damaged weapon tightly, Soukaku hoped that her team would rush to her aid as fast as they could upon seeing the news as this matchup was not in her favor. Luckily for her however, she didn’t have to stand alone as Wise rose to his feet and stood beside Soukaku. Even going as far as resting a hand on her shoulder, he showed her that he will support her despite all she’s done to him.

Wise wasn’t the only one joining the fight as Ellen, now Corin free, returned to the battlefield with Corin’s weapon in hand and a personal cheer squad rooting them on.

“Go get that bad guy Ellen!” Ruby screamed with both of her hands cupped around her mouth.

“Thrash that overgrown insect, Hollow Knight!” Belle cheered with a slight blush.

“Ms.Soukaku! We forgive you for hurting our friend, so kick that ethereal’s butt!” Mona yelled.

“For clarities, sake. Shall we call this new ethereal the “Great Moth”?” Lynn asked.

“Oh that’s a good one, I'm for sure adding that one to the database when I document this one.” Belle said nonchalantly.

All around the civilians from the Science building and even the adjacent buildings revealed themselves as they recognized the gravity of the situation. If the three fighters don’t defeat the Great Moth here or last until reinforcements arrive, then they are as good as dead.

With the three putting aside their differences, they gave each other a nod of acknowledgement before dashing towards the Great Moth, ready to give it their all.

Chapter Text

The Great Moth, an Ethereal born from the corruption of a young male student of New Eridu High. Not much is known about this Ethereal as it was only encountered less than a day after the first sightings.

With a glutinous appetite, it devoured everything in sight and after its evolution, it now tramples those it deemed inferior. And for enemies too strong for it to fight head on, this beast would utilize its evolved form of a previous skill it possessed in its larval state.

Truly it was a monster with a personality that reflected how the boy lived in life. And now for the first time, this insectoid Ethereal spreads its wings high in the sky to cast a shadow over the three heroes that challenged The Great Moth.

With a growl that morphed into a clicking screech, the Great Moth signaled the start of the fight. Swooping down and charging towards the heroes the Moth flapped its mighty wings, sending a gust of wind that picked up dust towards the three.

Unfazed, both Ellen and Soukaku met the Moth head on. Skidding along the earthy ground before coming to a stop, the two shifted their grip on their weapons, ready to strike.

“Sharky, when the ugly butterfly flies by, we can use its speed against it and slice it in half!” Soukaku explained to Ellen her plan of attack using her experience in Section Six.

“The name is Ellen and don’t think for a second I’m letting you off the hook, you little brat, once this Ethereal is done for, so are you.” Ellen bit back.

With a slight growl, Soukaku accepted her words, yet remained focused on the enemy closing in on them. Once the Great Moth came close enough to make it difficult to avoid their strikes, Soukaku swiped at the air in order to build up ice energy in her blade before leaping above the target.

“I go high, you go low!” Soukaku screamed as she brought her heavy blade down on the Moth who countered with its lance-like horn. Clashing with the Ethereal, Soukaku demonstrated superior strength as she pushed forward her weapon with ease. Quickly breaking away from the clash, she then reeled back her weapon and knocked the Moth out of the sky causing it to plummet to the ground.

Following up on Soukaku’s efforts, Ellen dashed just underneath the Moth’s path of descent and tightened her grip on Corin’s chainsaws. Swiping against the Moth’s descent path, she grunted as armored chitan met her saw’s teeth. With sparks flying off the wound and a high pitched screech that followed, the Great Moth recovered its balance and flew back above the buildings, revealing a large gash across its torso.

Enraged, the Great Moth screeched at having its newfound body sullied by our heroes. And so responded by intensely rattling its body and flapping its wings. What followed was a change in the environment as greenish scales and powder rained down on the area, afflicting anyone it touched with a debuff

Breathing in the powder, Soukaku felt her body tingling before letting out a sneeze. “Oh, I don’t feel so good. This feels like having a tummy ache, ughhh,” the little oni wined.

Watching as her skin changed color upon making contact with the powder, Ellen quickly realized it's the same condition as Rina’s. Feeling her strength being slowly sapped away, she immediately got to work.

“It’s spreading poison! Don’t breathe it in unless you want to be in a sorry state. We need to end this quickly before we won’t be able to move.” Ellen explained with a glare. Receiving a nod from Soukaku, the two dashed towards the nearest building and rather than going inside to climb the floors, Ellen looked back towards the oni.

“Give me a boost!” Ellen ordered before jumping up slightly. Nodding in response, Soukaku caught Ellen on her banner and just like before with the Hollow Knight, she propelled her temporary ally upwards. After reaching a certain height, Ellen then grabbed hold of the window’s ledge before kicking off of it and running up the side of the building towards the roof.

Exploding up from the edge of the building Ellen then landed on the rooftop. Taking a moment to catch her breath, she observed the Great Moth’s movements. Noticing that its still spreading its poison powder everywhere, she knew she could take this opportunity to land a fatal blow had it not been for the fact that the moth was so high up in the air.

Despite this however, the most pressing thought on her mind was where the famous Hollow Knight was. Looking back at where he was last seen, she noticed that he was rummaging through the debris in the food court. Despite not showing any emotion on her face, Ellen was obviously dripping with disbelief considering the heroic actions he previously showed in all the videos she’s seen.

| From Wise’s POV

Dashing along after Ellen and Soukaku, Wise did his best to keep up, but found himself unable to close the distance. Feeling weak and out of breath, Wise fell on one knee. With every breath he took, he could taste the slight amount of ether energy entering his mouth. Yet it wasn’t enough to satisfy his need for energy.

By the time he caught his breath and tried to rejoin the battle, Ellen and Soukaku had already displayed their fighting experience as they landed a hit across the torso of the Great Moth. Shocked by their progress without him, Wise questioned whether he really needed to intervene at all. That was until the Great Moth spread its poison powder across the battlefield.

Immediately recognizing the nature of the powder, Wise began to think of a plan to stop the foe.

(Our enemy is a flying Ethereal, we can’t reach it with our current weaponry. Maybe Ellen can leap after it? No, she's never displayed such an extent in athleticism. Maybe I can throw rocks? I’m not feeling all that powerful right now though. Hmm, I can jump pretty high, but it comes down to whether I have enough energy. But how am I supposed to recharge on such short notice?) Wise thought to himself.

As he continued to ponder the different ways he could be helpful to the two girls fighting for their lives, he began to stress more as every second thinking meant that his allies were growing weaker from the poison. Breathing through his nose, he then caught a whiff of something sweet and enticing.

(Wait that smell-) Wise thought with a deep sniff. Following the scent of the smell to its source, he then realized that it was coming from the ruined food stalls. Specifically the Ether generators, whilst most of them were gone, the ones that remained were in an irreparable state, but what was important was that it was leaking ether from the canisters.

(That’s it! If I can absorb the ether in the canisters, I can recharge quickly and help out Ellen and Soukaku!) Wise thought. With a plan in mind, he made a break for the sources of ether and scavenged the ruins for any remnants he could find. Despite many being nearly empty, Wise managed to make do and absorb as much ether as he could. With every tube connected to a canister, he would suck the energy straight out and those that had a direct leakage, he would get down to the ground and absorb it directly.

With every ounce of ether he siphoned, he felt himself grow stronger and by the end of his snack session with the last canister drained, he felt the power coursing through his veins. Now ready to fight, Wise grabbed hold of a few empty canisters before hurling them towards the Great Moth.

Knowing that it wouldn’t do anything, but tick the Ethereal off. He utilized the Ethereal’s nature to his advantage. After analyzing the Port Elpis footage, he realized that the behavior of these especially powerful ethereals matched those of elite specimens where they are more hostile in the presence of another powerful ethereal, resulting in a turf war.

And just like that, the Great Moth’s attention was drawn away from Ellen and onto him. Unfurling its massive wings, the Moth vibrates its body once more and with a flap of its wings, it sends its poisonous scales towards Wise in an attempt to weaken him before picking him off with its spikey body.

Out of instinct Wise brought an arm up to his eyes to block the scales from blinding him despite having a crystal-like visor acting as his eyes in his ethereal form. Just like before, he realized that the ethereal’s poison didn’t have a strong effect on him as it does his allies. When he first encountered this poison, it was by indirect contact from Rina’s dress and even then it wasn’t notable when he was human.

Now that he is in a more resistant body and had a direct dosage however, he could feel a slight burning sensation across his body as the poison took effect. Curling up his fist, he felt his strength slowly weakening.

(Best not to draw out this fight, I better end this quickly. But how to do so? Maybe I should charge in and hope that Ellen could finish it off?) Wise thought.

Confirming his plan, Wise promptly charged forward the ethereal causing the Great Moth to respond in kind as it flapped its wings at such a high frequency, its buzzing sound could be felt up close and be heard throughout the school.

Baring its sharp mandibles, the Great Moth dove towards the ground before changing its trajectory so that it flew parallel to the earth. Like a rhinoceros it charged forward blindly, ready to impale Wise.

With the sound of the pavement clacking underneath Wise’s powerful footstep he drew closer and closer to the Moth. With a collision evident, he dug his feet into the ground to come to a stop and opened his arms, ready to catch the Ethereal.

(Alright Wise, this is quite possibly the biggest Ethereal you’ve ever consciously dealt with, but the same rules apply. Just like the Hati and the Beholder, use the enemies speed against it and redirect the attack. Good thing I’ve watched Final Punch so many times.) wise internally hyped himself.

With the Great Moth coming in reach, Wise narrowly dodged its horn and began to wrap his arm around it before he felt an incredible force strike him in the side and sent him flying backwards.

Whilst recoiling from the attack, Wise managed to point his head in the direction of the Moth who had one of its meaty legs outstretched.

(The armor plating on its legs! So they weren’t just for protection after all. I see, swinging its legs around, the plating can act like a mace or hammer causing blunt trauma.) Wise thought as he analyzed and broke down the Moth’s characteristics.

Finally having his feet make contact with the ground, Wise found it difficult to regain his footing as the momentum caused him to slip and roll to the ground messily.

After regaining his composure and getting back on his feet, his imaginary blood ran cold as he avoided being impaled by the Moth. Grabbing hold of its horn, he then attempted to slam the ethereal into the ground, but made one miscalculation. The Moth unlike the other ethereal’s he dealt with could fly. And so with a flick of its head, the Moth threw Wise into a wall.

Flying upwards to avoid crashing himself, the Moth flew back around and charged towards Wise, this time with a higher chance of success to impale him.

With his back against the wall, Wise pushed himself off the crater his body created and dove to the floor just in time to dodge the attack. With no target, the Moth crashed into the wall and got itself partially stuck inside the building.

Jumping to his feet, Wise then seized this opportunity and unleashed a powerful punch into the Moth’s only unprotected area on its body, its abdomen.

Screeching in pain, The Great Moth dug itself further into the building and turned itself around. With every movement, the building crumbled around it. And like an explosion, the Moth broke free from the confined space and flew into the open sky.

Keeping its distance the Ethereal sent out another wave of poisonous powder to coat the battlefield.

(Not good, it probably won’t repeat the same mistake of fighting near the buildings. And with no ranged support, Ellen and Soukaku can’t fight it either. Think Wise, how do we ground this thing?) Wise thought frantically.

With the clock ticking, the three fighters were running out of time. Both Ellen and Soukaku who were on standby wanted to ambush the ethereal, but the sheer amount of distance between them and it was too great for a simple leap to suffice.

Waiting for her moment to strike, Ellen carefully followed the fight between the Knight and Moth, but due to the poor matchup, it looked like she was in for the long run.

Sighing, she rested her chin on the handle of the chainsaw as she waited for the right opportunity.

“If only I could get close enough to clip its wings, then I'd slice it apart and be done with it.” Ellen grumbled.

“Oh? Then why don’t you do it?” A voice said energetically from behind her.

“Yeah, do it! Do it!” Another voice repeated.

Rather than whipping her head around, Ellen stood still as she recognized the owners of the voices.

“Anastella and Drusilla. To what do I owe the pleasure?” Ellen said lazily.

Floating around her, the two bangboo appeared before her with some serious news.

“Mistress Rina is in bad condition,” Anastella explained.

“Very very bad!” Drusilla repeated with its arms in the air.

Now more alert, Ellen’s eyes became more focused. “What do you mean? How’s she doing?” Ellen asked with a hint of worry.

Placing their hands on their waists, the two bangboo levitated up and down drastically as if making a point.

“Weren’t you listening to a word we said? It’s bad! Very, very bad! The Proxy says we need to get her to medical attention as soon as possible.” Anastella said.

“Yeah! Asap! Asap! That’s why we’re here to help.” Drusilla repeated.

Thinking to herself, Ellen thought of a new plan on how to approach the moth ethereal until she caught Drusilla’s last words.

“Wait, you’ll help me?” Ellen asked.

Spinning around in place, the two bangboos flew together and formed just enough electricity to prove a point. “Duh, Mistress Rina is in danger, we can’t let our master die in a stinking Hollow. So make yourself useful and tell us how we can help.” Anastella explained.

“Hmmm.” Ellen hummed. Thinking up a plan on the spot, Ellen then explained to the two bangboo what they needed to do. After a bit of prepping, she just needed one more piece to complete the puzzle.

Biting the nail on her thumb, Soukaku began to lose her cool as she felt her limbs slightly aching from the poison and no progress on dealing with the Great Moth after it had a little tussle with the Hollow Knight.

“If only Huramasa or the Chief were here, then we can take it out in one hit!” Soukaku complained. Hearing a whistle, Soukaku threw her head back to find the source of the sound. After locating it, she spotted Ellen on the building’s rooftop waving at her and motioning the oni to join.

Seeing as the older girl had a plan, Soukaku quickly sped through the building to eventually make it to the rooftop where Ellen was and was filled in on her plan. With a toothy grin, the little Oni wholeheartedly agreed on the plan and enthusiastically agreed.

“And now time for the distraction. You two, go now!” Ellen ordered the bangboos.

Like a pair of missiles, both Anastella and Drusilla shot forth from behind Ellen and towards the Great Moth. Crackling with energy, the two bangboo began to fly in a circular motion in order to condense the energy into an energized vortex. Like a storm the bangboos generated enough electricity to match the output of a lightning bolt and sent it directly towards the backside of the Moth.

As the bangboos got closer and closer, the sound of electricity crackling in the air caught the attention of the Moth who easily dodged the attack. Flying around the bangboo, the Great Moth flew as fast as the wind and appeared right behind the bangboos before extending its forelimbs and smacking them towards the ground.

Doing so however was a deadly mistake for the ethereal as its arrogance towards any living creature resulted in it not only turning its backs to the girls who had the ability to threaten it, but also allowed the girls to close the distance.

Leaping off the building and towards the ethereal, Soukaku unleashed three sets of chilling winds towards the unsuspecting moth and landed on top of it. Twisting her body, she then began to spin around in a circle and allowed her blade to follow, resulting in some solid hits between the wings of the moth.

In a panic the Moth attempted to shake Soukaku off to no avail. Unable to rid itself of the Oni, it then began to ascend higher and higher into the sky. Flying in a zig zag patter, flying upside down, and doing barrel rolls. Knowing that she would inevitably die if she fell from such a height, she clung desperately onto the back of the ethereal and when it finally stabilized its flight presumably from exhaustion.

Soukaku spun her blade around once more and drove it right into the Ethereal’s back. Summoning frosty winds, she built up just enough frost to freeze the Moth’s wings and just as Ellen planned, Soukaku leapt up towards the Moth’s large wings and shattered them before swinging towards its smaller wings.

However, just as she was about to land a hit, the Ethereal swung its armored appendage towards her and flew backwards. Luckily, Soukaku managed to grab hold of the opening on its armor as it swung its limb. Gripping its limb tightly, Soukaku felt the wind rushing upwards as the Moth began descending quickly.

Seeing that the moth was going to slam its own leg into the ground to shake Soukaku off, she stared directly into the monster’s eyes, waiting for the right moment until the two were level with the school buildings. And just like that, she let go. Falling backwards towards the ground, Soukaku watched on as the Moth struggled to slow its descent after losing its large pair of wings.

With a smile creeping on her face, she extended her hand upwards as Drusilla caught her just in time to slow her fall. Still looking up, she then witnessed Ellen leap off of Anastella who acted as a platform and buried her chainsaw into one side of the Moth’s small wings. Too far away to hear the saw in action, the sight of the Moth losing its balance and plummeting to the ground was enough to know their plan had succeeded.

Like Iccurus, the Great Moth was stripped of its wings the moment it began to experience the pleasures of flight. Crashing into the ground hard enough to leave behind a creator in its wake, the ethereal attempted to fly once more, but was unable to due to only one side of its body processing intact wings. Enraged and humiliated, the Moth then began to thrash about, taking out its anger on anything around it.

As it thrashed about in the crater, dirt and dust began to kick up, but not enough to completely block off all visibility to it. With Anastella’s help Ellen safely made her way back onto solid ground and immediately regrouped with Soukaku who took a few short breaths before readying her weapon for combat once more.

Watching the girl’s plan play out and succeed, Wise felt proud that he was acquainted with the two powerhouses, yet that also made him aware of his shortcomings. Feeling his stomach drop, Wise realized now that when it really mattered, he wasn’t ready to take on the stronger Ethereal’s in the hollow.

Yet that wasn’t going to stop him. Resolving himself, Wise joined the two in the final battle. Eager to prove himself useful, he punched his palm, showing the girls that he wanted to fight too.

“Well well well, look who finally decided to show up. It can’t fly anymore, so we just have to be careful of its horn. Also its front legs, I'm sure you remember since it sent you flying.” Ellen said with a glance in his direction.

Nodding, Wise grimaced internally after being reminded of the hard hit he took, but motioned to himself and the Moth, showing that he was ready to take it head on this time. Point at each of the girls, he then motioned for them to wrap around the Moth and attack where it's safe.

With a plan in mind, the three dashed off to finish this fight once and for all. Seeing as he needed to be the center of attention for this plan to work, Wise opened his mouth and for the first time during this fight he let out a monstrous roar that agitated the Moth.

Stripped of its wings, the Moth, having no choice, charged forward like a rhino. Showcasing its power, the ground shook with every step it took. Knowing what came next, Wise roared once more, signaling for the girls to dash ahead. And as predicted, rather than having a straightforward charge, the Moth extended its forelimbs outwards and swung them inwards towards the three.

For a regular soldier or investigator, the attack would have been devastating, but for the two girls who were used to clashing with powerful monsters, it was just another day. Swinging their weapons against the forelimbs, they stopped the attack dead in its tracks and gave Wise the opportunity to deal with the Moth head on.

With no more tricks up its sleeve, Wise and the Great Moth collided with a bang. Grabbing hold of its horn, Wise then dug his foot into the ground and engaged in a tug of war of strength. With great effort he was finally able to lift the ethereal off of the ground and fell backwards, slamming the bug into the ground.

Whilst the Great Moth was struggling on its back, Soukaku and Ellen came and slashed away at the beast on its soft abdomen. Digging her saw deeper and deeper into the ethereal, Ellen was ready to finish the job until the moth regained its bearings and knocked her away with its forelimbs.

Skittering to its feet, the moth swung its legs in a circular motion to deal with everyone within its strike zone, but missed as all of the agents jumped backwards in time.

Wise however opted to jump over the attack and punched the Moth to the ground before landing a nasty uppercut that caused the foe to lift its upper body off the floor.

Showing its moxie however, the Moth slammed back down and flicked Wise with his horn, sending him flying backwards. As Wise tumbled to a stop, Ellen and Soukaku charged forward.

When the Moth charged forward, Soukaku unfurled her banner and sent chilling waves of wind to slow its momentum, allowing for Ellen to dash in and with a momentum boost form the winds, she spun around and swung her saw directly towards the ethereal’s head, ready to end the fight.

Had the hit connected, the three as well as all of the spectators watching could have breathed a sigh of relief. Instead the Moth vibrated intensely, sending another wave of scales and powder into the air which blinded Ellen in the most crucial moment of the fight.

In that short amount of time it took Ellen to swing her weapon, the Moth managed to grab Ellen before lifting her up in the air and slamming her back into the ground. Pinned underneath the armored plating, Ellen struggled to breathe and fight her way out of its grasp.

Alarmed, Soukaku charged forward in an attempt to free the shark girl, but was intervened by the Moth’s other foreleg that clashed with her for a bit before ultimately pinning the Oni as well.

With both girls down, Wise was left to either finish the fight or rescue the girls. Charging forward, Wise neared the ethereal with the sinking feeling in his stomach returning.

(Can I do this? Can I save them? No! I have to do this or else Ellen and Soukaku could get killed. Focus, focus on the enemy!) Wise thought to himself.

Leaping into the air, Wise raised his foot as high into the air as he could with the intent of performing an axe kick, but made another rookie mistake.

In the air he was left vulnerable and with nothing to kick off of or grab onto, he was an easy target. And so, the Great Moth lowered its head as close to the ground and thrusted its mighty horn upwards towards him.

What followed was the sound of a crack followed by the screams of a blue haired girl who watched her only family get impaled by an enemy that would inevitably move onto her and her friends.

In disbelief, Wise hung motionless on the ethereal’s horn. Examining the out of contact, he couldn’t muster the strength to dislodge himself from the ethereal. Not that he needed to as the Moth raised its appendage to scrape him off of its proud horn as if he was garbage now that he no longer posed a threat.

Collapsing to the ground, his head landed in such a spot that the Moth was in his sights. And with him out of the picture, it was finally free to torment the girls who dared to injure its perfect body.

Applying more pressure on its legs, the pinned girls screamed out in pain as they clutched tightly onto the armored chitin. Ellen, the fighter she was, never stopped resisting as she attempted to bite her way out of the Ethereal’s grasp.

(They don’t stop, do they? Even in the face of death they keep fighting.) Wise thought in despair. Seeing the girls struggle so hard, he couldn’t help but feel disappointed in himself for not trying harder, for resisting to the end.

So despite having a gaping hole in his chest, he summoned what little strength he had left to flip onto his stomach and slowly he pushed off of the ground.

Repositioning himself to sit on his knees, Wise breathed heavily due the amount of effort it took him. With every breath he inhaled he felt himself regaining his strength. And with every exhale, he felt the energy leaving his body.

Roaring once more, he gained the attention of the Moth who at this point was fed up with him, but nonetheless decided to take its time approaching him to finish him off.

With a hazy mind, he went through every possible way he could get everyone out of this situation, what exactly did he have left to give? His winning condition was on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn’t quite make out what it was.

“You idiot! Breath! Use your ether breath and blow it away!” Belle yelled out the window desperately. Taken aback at first at Belle’s sudden outburst, Ellen’s friends began to cheer as well as they had nothing left to lose.

“That’s right, Hollow Knight! You can do it! You can beat that ethereal!” Ruby cheered.

“Please don’t let my friend die Mr.Hollow Knight!” Mona yelled.

All around the surviving civilians let themselves be known. No longer did they stay quiet in the hopes of staying hidden from the ethereals, but decided to risk it all to encourage him. Even those hiding out in other buildings that he presumed Soukaku to have saved whilst everyone else was in the bunker offered their support.

With so much support backing him up, how couldn’t Wise out in a little bit more effort. But a question still n awes away at him.

(That’s right, the footage showed that I can breathe ether, but…how do I do that?) Wise worriedly thought. With every second he dwells in his thoughts, his enemy grows closer.

In a panic, he did whatever he could to replicate the attack from memory. Roaring, breathing out, blowing at the enemy. Nothing he tried worked. With no time to be embarrassed, Wise struggled again and again until he felt a jolt on his back and a soft elegant voice whispering in his ear.

“Easy now, a clear mind does wonders in a fight~” Rina said with a smile.

(Rina,) Wise grunted. Turning his head backwards to get a good look at the maid, he was met with her small hand forcing him to look forward once more.

“Ah, ah. It’s bad manners if you don’t give your enemies your undivided attention.” Rina said. Squeezing the muscles and feeling the armor on his back, she pursed her lips as she tested her abilities on him.

“From what I can tell, you have trouble regulating the energy in your body, which is why you’ve been failing at summoning this “ether breath”, but no need to worry. I’m quite excellent at giving electrifying massages.” Rina said whilst emphasizing some keywords.

Relieved to have the support, Wise calmed himself and closed his eyes to see if Rina could really help him.

Taking a breath herself, Rina allowed her electricity to build up between her fingers before pressing the energy into Wise’s body.

At first he resisted and tensed up upon being electrocuted but quickly eased into Rina’s capable hands once he got used to the sensation.

On the other hand, Rina was left wide eyed in shock as she fought to maintain control of her electricity to not accidentally shock him.

(This unruly energy fighting back! This sensation, I’ve felt it before…you’re!) Rina thought to herself. With a smile creeping on her face, she began to massage Wise with more fervor than before, ensuring that she would not fail.

Deep inside Wise, he felt the energy from Rina coursing through his veins, suppressing the uneasy feeling in his stomach. Feeling his cells come alive as it began to dance with electricity, he felt something inside of him stir.

A well of energy that he wasn’t aware of made itself known. Swirling around like a vortex, he felt that he could draw strength from it to provide the necessary energy to enable his breath attack.

Focusing hard, Wise tried to tap into this well of energy and felt it slowly seeping out in all directions before converging in a narrow path and leading elsewhere.

On the surface, it looked as if Wise gave up fighting as he sat on his knees, but to those who were observant, they would notice that a spine in the tip of his tail began to glow a dull color before creeping up and lighting up the other spines along his back.

Exhaling deeper than before a light amount of ether energy seeped out from his mouth like a hot breath on a cold day.

| Elsewhere in New Eridu

Sitting in her chair at Public Security’s Special Investigation Office, Qingyi was nonchalantly sipping a cup of hot water as Zhu Yuan and Seth zoomed through a stack of paperwork on their desks as the chief ordered them to finish it before joining the rescue team in charge of the Hollow disaster surroundings Ellen’s school.

Annoyed by Qingyi’s sipping, Zhu Yuan politely called the automaton out for her behavior.

“Qingyi! You know we could finish a lot faster if you helped us!” Zhu Yuan complained.

Pointing a finger straight up, Qingyi gave the officer a sly smile as she reassured her.

“Oh Zhu Yuan, do you have no faith in your fellow officers," Qingyi taunted before the spike belonging to Wise began to glow on her desk.

Taking the glowing spike out of the evidence Bach, she observed it in the palm of her hand before a slight trickle of electricity zapped her.

Grunting, Qingyi gently, but quickly placed the spike down on her desk and nursed her hand.

“Qingyi! Are you alright over there?” Seth said with his ears perked up.

“Just fine!” Qingyi shot back. Looking back down towards the spike on the desk, she was shocked to find that it was inching away in a certain direction.

Using her AI capabilities, she then cross referenced the direction of the spike and a map of New Eridu and sure enough, the only notable location was the Hollow Disaster at New Eridu High.

With a smile, she carefully placed the spike back into the evidence bag, Qingyi then got up from her seat and waltzed over to Zhu Yuan’s desk and grabbed a stack of paper.

“Qingyi?” Zhu Yuan questioned.

“We need to hurry, he’s been sighted, we need to finish up quickly and go.” Qingyi ordered.

Slamming his hands on his desk, Seth shot up from his seat in shock. “Wait, you found him? Where is he?” Seth asked.

“Exactly where we were headed.” Qingyi said cryptically.

“The school? But how do you know if he’ll really be there?” Zhu asked.

Humming, Qingyi returned to her desk and went through the paperwork like a printing machine.

“Gut feeling?” She stated innocently.

Collapsing back into his seat, Seth sighed. “Gut feeling or too much water in your system?” Seth said.

“Qingyi, not that I don’t believe you, but are you sure?” Zhu asked with her hands never stopping.

“Positive, he’s there and I bet something pretty interesting is happening.” Qingyi said.

| back in the hollows

Charging up his ether breath, Wise’s spine grew brighter and brighter until they lit up like Christmas lights. Seeing this and feeling the amount of ether energy building up in him, the Great Moth sensed imminent danger and so charged forward.

Alarmed, Wise wasted no time showing what he learnt as he took a deep breath in and unleashed a wild torrent of ether energy towards the ethereal.

Landing a direct hit, the Great Moth struggled underneath the force and heat of the attack, slowing its charge to a halt, it was then pushed back by sheer force and collapsed to the ground.

After giving everything he had, Wise called off his attack and began panting heavily under Rina’s care.

(D-did we get it?) Wise tried to say in his monstrous voice. Standing adjacent from him, the Great Moth stood tall, but its body was heavily charred.

Taking a step forward, it tumbled to one side before losing its balance and flipping onto its back with its remaining legs curled up, a classic sign of a dead insect.

All of a sudden cheers erupted from all around as the spectators congratulated him and the girls for saving their lives. Marching towards Wise and Rina, Soukaku and Ellen leaned in their weapons for support as they nursed their injuries.

“Good job metal head,” Ellen complimented.

Soukaku on the other hand knelt down beside the Knight and rested a hand near his injuries.

“Oh Mr.Knight, I’m sorry that you got hurt. I promised that if I took you in, I would have shared all my snacks with you while Nagi or Chief interrogated you and now you’re dying.” Soukaku said in a sad tone, with tears welling up in her eyes, she looked away with regret.

Resting his armored hand on the girl’s head, Wise leaned back into Rina’s comfortable hold before realizing what he’d just done. Quickly sitting up, he waved a hand to apologize.

Giggling, Rina paid him no mind. Shortly afterwards, the girls ran outside and met up with the fighters.

“Ellen!” The girls called out in worry before bringing her into a tight group hug.

“Ellen, you were amazing out there! But look at how hurt you are!” Ruby said.

“Right, we’d be really sad if you weren’t with us anymore Ellen.” Lynn continued.

“I’m thank you for everything Mr.Hollow Knight,” Mona said shyly.

“Oh gosh! That’s right, the Knight! Hey you were pretty cool out there yourself dude, especially at the end there with that cool laser thing that came out of your mouth.” Ruby said.

“Wait a moment, you should meet our new friend Belle, she seems to be a big fan of yours. She cheered the hardest and prayed for you to win,” Lynn explained.

Walking up from behind them with her hands covering her mouth, Belle approached with tears in her eyes. Looking him over, managed to keep her cool in front of everyone, but on the inside, her heart shattered after seeing her brother in such a state.

“No, no, no, no. Please, no. You can heal from this right? You’ll live?” Belle begged. Erupting like a damn, her tears streamed down her face with uncertainty for the future.

“Huh, apparently she’s a really big fan.” Ruby commented only to receive a jab in the rib from Ellen.

(Belle, i’ll be alright. Just a little banged up, but I haven’t disappeared yet, so that’s good.) Wise tried to say, but the only noise that left his mouth was a growl of varying pitches.

Knowing her brother inside and out, Belle knew he would try to play off his injury so that she wouldn’t worry, but she wasn’t a kid anymore. She’s aware of how such a wound is usually fatal. But she was also hoping that Wise’s newfound abilities included regeneration of the sort.

Going over her memories of the footage, Belle desperately tried to remember any characteristic of the Knight that could help in this situation, but could only remember how tenacious he was. And with wide eyes, she then remembered how the Knight could recover so quickly.

Practically throwing herself at him, Belle placed a hand over his wound and immediately ordered him around. “You can heal from this, all you have to do is absorb a bunch of ether and you’ll get better.”

“Uh, like a battery? Belle, I'm not sure how he works, but can’t he like, go to a mechanic or something?” Mona asked curiously. The actual identity of the Hollow Knight is a hot topic amongst many of the residents of New Eridu as none could mutually agree on the exact origin of the individual. Some like Mona, believed him to be a sort of intelligent construct, a secret weapon developed by the Defense Force to combat the hollows.

“If he was a robot, it would be as simple as replacing a part, but we have to face the facts, he’s just a guy in a suit of armor. So ether won’t do anything for a guy like this,” Lynn said sadly, believing that he was a human or thiren underneath the armor.

Sniffing and wiping away her tears, Belle stayed silent. Not confirming or denying anything, she only looked into Wise’s eyes expectantly. Unable to resist his sister’s gaze, Wise did his best to absorb the ether in the Hollow as it should meet his energy requirements.

Closing his eyes, he began to inhale. At first it was shallow breaths that he had to quickly exhale, but with every breath he took in, the less he had to take out. Feeling the rich taste of ether entering his mouth, he began to salivate more and more until eventually he stopped breathing out altogether.

Feeling his strength returning, Wise instinctively held his head high as he greedily inhaled stronger than before. As everyone watched on with a mix of awe and shock, they noticed the tissue around his open wound began to glow in a rainbow of colors before closing itself. Seeing this it was made clear to them that the Hollow Knight was neither an intelligent construct or a guy in a suit, he was an ethereal.

Stumbling backwards, the girls hid behind Ellen in fear, but were still grateful enough that they didn’t completely see the Knight as a monster.

Remembering her job, Soukaku stepped forward with her blade ready. Despite her injuries, she understood what she needed to do next. Before she could take another step closer to Wise however, Ellen stopped her once again.

Glaring at Ellen, Soukaku was unusually quiet as she allowed Ellen to speak first.

“I told you before, you aren’t getting away with attacking Corin shrimp.” Ellen said venomously. Giving a glance towards Rina, she was expecting the older maid to get in her way and admonish her for her actions, but surprisingly Rina encouraged Ellen with a nod. Feeling all the more justified, she doubled down on her actions.

“Whoa Ellen, are you sure you want to go against a member of Section Six? You’ll probably never become a Hollow Investigator if you have that on your record.” Ruby commented.

Hearing this, Soukaku also felt as if she shouldn’t back down. “You should listen to your friend. I may not understand everything that’s going on, but I know I need to protect everyone so that we can all get along, but I can’t do that with you constantly getting in my way! Just look at him! He’s without a doubt an Ethereal! We’ll take him in and someone else can decide what to do with him, so please step aside. Or else!” Soukaku said as she put on her mask and got into a fighting stance.

Ready to brawl, the two girls held their weapons tightly, but were interrupted by Belle stepping in between them or more specifically in front of Soukaku. With her arms out, she stopped the little Oni from taking another step?

“Prox-,” Soukaku said with wide eyes before Ellen closed the distance and shoved a hand over the little Oni’s mouth.

“Manager of the video store,” Ellen reminded the agent.

“Ah, right. Sorry about that. Belle, you too?” Soukaku asked in disbelief. Inside she felt a little hurt that one of the proxies who she grew fond of would actively get in her way like this.

“Soukaku,” Belle said with quivered lips. Looking into Soukaku’s eyes, she pleaded with the girl. “Please, don’t do this. New Eridu needs the Hollow Knight, he’s helped people, saved their lives. I think in the future, he could even save everyone from the evil that lurks beneath the surface.” Belle said cryptically.

Drawing on the oni’s emotion was the way to win her over and Belle knows that. She felt bad that she had to put a good friend in a difficult spot, but if it were any other member of Section Six, she wouldn’t stand a chance.

Staring back at Belle, Soukaku paused for a few moments before raising her banner up into the air and stabbing it into the ground. Wrapping her arms around the back of her head and turning around to face the sky, she let out a sigh.

“Hah, it's a shame Mr.Knight got away from me. I guess I'll just tell everyone else the Knight was an Ethereal and that it was too powerful for me.” Soukaku said sarcastically.

With her frown morphing into a smile, Belle practically lunged at Soukaku as she wrapped her in a tight hug.

“Thank you Soukaku, I owe you one and I promise me and Wise will treat you to a feast.” Belle said.

Beaming at the word feast, Soukaku did a one-eighty at the thought of food. “Really! You promise?” The oni said eagerly, her tail wagging behind her.

Stepping up, Ellen then addressed Belle. “Speaking of Wise, he’s been gone an awfully long time huh?” Ellen said in obvious disbelief. Feeling the effects of the poison still, she began scratching her arms.

Sweating, Belle doubled down on her earlier lie. “Oh yeah, must have gotten lost trying to find the bathroom so maybe he’s in there now.” Belle said with as straight a face as she could muster.

Rising to her feet, Rina began floating beside them as she fought the urge to collapse again. “It’s true, I saw Master Wise enter the bathroom before I came down here. I’m sure he’ll show up eventually.” Rina said in reassurance.

With a doll-like expression, it was impossible to tell whether Rina was lying or not and so Ellen gave up on the idea and accepted that Wise may actually be having some bathroom troubles, but still kept her suspicion.

Whilst the crew were busy talking to one another, they failed to notice a small segment of displaced earth making its way towards the Moth’s corpse. Escaping from the earth, it was revealed to be the Hitchspiker from the bunker. Crawling its way on top of the Great Moth, the Hitchspiker analyzed the corpse and realized the ethereal had yet to fully pass, but instead was holding on by a thread.

Being the first to notice the new threat, Lynn pointed it out to the rest of her group.

“It's that Ethereal from before! The scorpion looking one!” The bespectacled girl cried out.

Turning their heads towards the direction Lynn was pointing, the combatants readied their weapons. Being a non-combatant, Belle instead stood safely behind everyone and analyzed the new threat.

“Wait, that one isn’t a Hitchspiker or maybe it is, but it's different somehow. Look how it exudes red vapor.” Belle pointed out. The size and shape of the ethereal are mostly similar, but it was more red in color, almost to the point of glowing.

In the time it took the group to hear Belle's explanation, the Hitchspiker found its way near the head of the Great Moth and burrowed into its body.

“No sharking way,” Ellen cursed with narrowed eyes. Encountering Hitchspikers before, she knew they had a special ability to bond with two specific ethereals, but nothing said they could bond with others outside the two species.

“Ellen! Mind your-oh wait, hehe, I get it. Hehe, sharking way.” Rina giggled.

Lighting up, the charred remains of the once downed Great Moth shuttered as the sound of a crack could be heard. Flipping upright, the back of the ethereal split open and a new being emerged from the crack. Now with blazing red wings, the Great Moth resurrects itself from death’s door.

“Really? We just got rid of it too.” Soukaku said with a slump of her shoulders.

“Uh, Hollow Knight. I think we could use another ether breath. Now would be good. Like right now! Do it now!” Belle said in a panic.

After all this time, Wise had been lost in his instincts. Absorbing as much as he could, he could feel the Hollow around him destabilize with how much ether he stole from it. Not completely aware of what was going on with his friends, he did vaguely sense a new presence in front of him. A presence that his very being wanted to crush and so he tapped into all the power he absorbed once more. Charging up his attack, his eyes and spines glowed as he radiated an aura of ether energy.

With a delightful smile, Rina assumed the Knight needed assistance once again to help guide his ether breath and so happily floated beside him. With her static hands, she then gently placed her hand on his back, but this time she received a much different reaction.

Due to electricity's unique behavior, the current bounced off of each of his dorsal spikes and visibly coarsed on his skin. Shining more than ever, Rina had to quickly retreat as she could feel the heat radiating off of his body.

“Oh no, what’s happening now.” Belle commented with worry. Shielding her eyes from the light, she was relieved that Wise began to lose the aura as it converged near his open mouth and in an absolutely cinematic display, he reared his head backwards and closed his mouth before throwing himself slightly forward and unleashing a beam of concentrated light straight towards the evolving Moth.

At first everyone shielded their eyes, not from the light, but from the shockwave of the attack as it had kicked up dust. In the middle of the attack however, Wise had changed the trajectory of the beam away from the Moth and towards the skies as he instinctively knew he had won.

As the dust began to settle after the aftermath of his attack, they turned towards the Great Moth in order to confirm its defeat. Instead they found the ethereal’s wings curling up as they were devoured by embers. Shifting their gaze upwards, they experienced a cold sweat as they noticed the sky splitting in two for a short moment before regenerating.

Dropping her weapon in shock, Soukaku’s mouth quivered as they dropped as low as they could. “His power…it rivaled chief’s.” Soukaku managed to word out. With a gulp, she shakily gave Wise a glance before noticing the civilians gathering together and exiting the buildings.

Assuming they had just missed the Knight’s big reveal, she returned to her duties and picked up her weapon. Walking away without even saying goodbye to her friends, she headed towards the civilians.

Snapped out of her trance after witnessing how powerful her brother really was, Belle chased after Soukaku. Reaching a hand out towards the little girl she called out to her. “Soukaku, wait. Are you leaving already?” Belle asked. In reality she really wanted to ask if the Oni would keep her word and not reveal her and Wise’s relation with the famous Hollow Knight.

After getting far enough away, Soukaku slowly turned her head towards Belle and displayed a seriousness she’s never shown before. “Proxy, just remember, you’re the one who let that ethereal free. If it ever turns on the people, know that Section Six will be ready.” Soukaku said before proceeding with rescue operations.

Mentally exhausted, Belle was taken aback by the once child-like oni’s seriousness. But right now, she didn’t have the time to worry about the consequences, she needed to get to Wise.

Rushing over to his side, she then checked him all over. “Looks like the hole in your chest is all fixed up, that’s awesome. But are you feeling ok? Not feeling like you’re going to “change” all of a sudden are you Mr.Knight?” Belle asked with an obvious hidden message.

Regaining his senses, Wise felt the area where he once had an open wound and saluted to his friends, showing them that he was alright. Afterwards he rushed away far from any prying eyes, leaving the girls to their own devices.

Sighing, Ellen leaned on Corin’s weapon for support as she finally had the chance to relax. Not a moment later, the Hollow around them began to collapse like shards of glass flying towards the sky. Cheering for their safety, Ellen’s friend hugged each other as they had survived a Hollow Disaster.

Excusing herself, Rina left to check in on Corin and join the civilians as they readied themselves to be checked by medical professionals once the rescue team arrived. After a bit of waiting and talking with one another, a whole fleet of ambulances, officers and friends arrived on campus.

In the middle of the bustling campus with so many personnel bustling about, Wise had found an opportunity to slip into the crowd after changing back and reunited with the girls.

“Hey boss, find your phone alright?” Ellen questioned him casually.

Unfazed, Wise just offered her a charming smile and played along as he quickly assumed that was his cover story, but knew better than to fall into a trap. “Did I lose my phone? I’m sorry for being away for so long, when I was walking through the hallway, I noticed that giant insect-like ethereal flying closer to the building so I hid. What did I miss?” Wise said matter of factly.

Clicking her tongue, Ellen was annoyed that her trap didn’t work, but paid it no mind. Adding onto the cover story, Belle cheerfully filled him in on the happenings until the two had to go their separate ways with the girls.

After having a quick checkup with the onsite medical team, the two walked back to their car in silence. And after making sure the doors and windows were locked, they drove away from the school, missing their officer friends in the process.

On the ride home, Belle then broke the silence. “So, what was it like?” She asked curiously.

“What was what like?” Wise jokingly responded as he came to a stop at a light. Receiving a punch on his arm, he grimaced. “Oh no, I just fought a bunch of monsters, but it looks like a missed one,” he said as he nursed his arm.

Pouting, Belle’s face grew red in mock embarrassment. “Why you! You know what I mean. Were you all there? When you were fighting I mean and when you got hurt…” Belle said with the last part quieter than the rest.

Seeing this, Wise simply rested his hand on her head like he used to do when they were little and Belle was sad. “It did scare me when I got impaled, but my other body is more durable than I thought, if it weren’t for you quick thinking though what with your idea of sparking my regeneration by absorbing ether from the atmosphere and what not. I owe you my life.”

With a sniffle, Belle fought back her tears after finally being able to let her guard down and rested her head on his shoulder. “I was so scared I would lose you.” she whimpered.

“I won’t die, not when we still haven’t found our teacher, not until our future is secure.” Wise tried to say in reassurance. However, his words would imply that he would soon, Belle didn’t bite back.

Staring at the road ahead, the siblings shared a moment of silence as they enjoyed the other’s presence. “But what was it actually like being an ethereal? You had the super strength and the ability to shoot a laser out of your mouth. You have to tell me what that was like!” Belle whined.

Laughing at his sister’s antics, Wise simply took the exit leading into Lumina Square rather than towards his home. “How about we talk about that over dinner? Whatever you want tonight.” Wise said.

“Really? Alright!” Belle yelled cheerfully with her fist pumped in the air. Driving off into the lit up city, the two siblings would enjoy their meal as they talked about the day's events.